


Still Burning Bright

by emmyphant



Series: Jolie and Yaz [3]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: ADHD!Doc, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, Angst, Established Relationship, F/F, Family Fluff, Fluff, Human Doctor (Doctor Who), Human Thirteenth Doctor, Hurt/Comfort, I'll add more tags as i go, Marriage, Married Couple, Married Life, Sequel, Tags Are Hard, it's the jolie and yaz sequel!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-13 06:01:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29397342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emmyphant/pseuds/emmyphant
Summary: The sequel to I Like the Chance You Take, I Like the Mess You Make, Jolie and Yaz are starting their life as a married couple. How will they cope with the ups and downs of married life, and everything life has to throw at them in general?This is a sequel, I would highly recommend reading the original first!Updated every weekend
Relationships: Thirteenth Doctor/Yasmin Khan
Series: Jolie and Yaz [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2135433
Comments: 48
Kudos: 29





	1. New Adventure

**Author's Note:**

> Ahhhh it's the sequel! This is somewhere between a story with plot, and a series of consecutive one-shots. There will be chunks of chapters that all happen, time-wise, in very close proximity to each other while others will have large time jumps in between them. I will try my best to make this clear at the beginning of each chapter! But....enjoy!

Jolie feels a grin spread from ear to ear as she slowly slides open the balcony door of the small villa they are renting in a town just outside of Lisbon, trying to be quiet so as not to wake her soon-to-be wife. The sun is rising behind them, but the sky above the Atlantic Ocean in front of her is slightly tinted pink, a sharp contrast to the deep blue ocean capped with white streaks below it. It stretches as far as the eye can see, all the way to the horizon, and there is something slightly unsettling about knowing that there is nothing but ocean for thousands of miles in that direction. They had arrived late last night and had crawled straight into bed, completely exhausted from their day of travel and knowing that they would need to get as much rest as possible before they started their honeymoon in earnest. Although their ceremony is in a few days, they will not sign their marriage certificates until they are back home, and they will do so at the small party they throw with their family and friends. It had been their compromise; a private wedding ceremony of their own abroad but signing the official documents in front of friends and family.

That thought sends an excited shiver through her body as she makes her way across the balcony and rests her crutches against the balustrade so she can lean forward on her arms and gaze out at the view. There is a strong breeze coming in off the open ocean and it dances with her hair, strands tickling her shoulders, but it is a pleasant contrast with the warm of the stone railing and the warm tiles against her bare feet.

She is not sure how long she has been standing, gazing over the water and lost in her own thoughts when she hears a quiet cough from behind her. Knowing it is Yaz, her _fiancée,_ there is already a soft smile when she tilts her head around to regard her standing in the doorway. She rubs the sleep from her eyes, natural curls tumbling down around her shoulders as she yawns, and Jolie finds herself thinking, not for the first time, just how she managed to get so lucky.

“Hey you,” she murmurs as Yaz gravitates towards her, slotting into her side and winding an arm around her waist. Jolie mirrors the action, kissing Yaz’s forehead.

“Sleep well?” Yaz asks. Jolie rests her cheek against Yaz’s temple, her slightly greater height giving her the perfect purchase for such a thing.

“Yeah, like a log,” she replies, nuzzling further into Yaz as though she hadn’t just spent the whole previous day and night pressed up close to her; first the confines of an airplane and a coach, and then voluntarily in the bed.

“I could tell.”

“Huh?”

Yaz giggles, which turns into a small cough. Her voice is still rough from sleep.

“Yeah. You snore way louder when you’re properly asleep,” she explains, laughing when Jolie’s eyebrows shoot up her face.

“I do?!”

“Yeah.”

“I thought I had one snore, Yaz! Just one boring level of snoring.”

“Nope, you’re a variety snorer, babe,” Yaz teases.

“You’re sure you want to marry a variety snorer? You’re stuck with this for life,” Jolie grins lopsidedly.

“Yeah. I’ve put up with you for almost four years, I think I can put up with a little more.”

Jolie giggles lightly, pulling Yaz towards her to drop a kiss to her forehead.

"How much time do we have before we have to go and pick up the van? I forgot again," she asks, realising she is not wearing a watch and so she has little idea what time it actually is.

"It were about 8 when I woke up, we've got to go and get the van between eleven and twelve," Yaz informs.

"Go out for breakfast and a lazy morning in town?" Jolie suggests, and Yaz grins at her.

"You read my mind."

* * *

“Wow, that’s yellow,” Jolie grins as they get shown round to the back of the car rental company they’re hiring their camper van from. The van in question is a classic VW camper van, a bright pastel yellow colour with white detailing, and it is a lot bolder than they had expected. And also a lot higher off the ground.

“Here are the keys and the paperwork, will you be sharing the driving or just one of you?” The agent asks, passing the stuff to Yaz while Jolie’s hands are occupied holding her crutches. They hadn’t bargained that the flight yesterday would play havoc with her knee, and as a result she is stiff and sore today, although it should ease off in time for their wedding in four days.

“Just me,” Yaz informs, looking at the manual rather than electronic key in her hand in confusion.

“It’s an original model, but the interior has been redone and is quite new. You’ve still got to unlock it with a proper key though,” he explains, pointing to the spot on the sliding doors so Yaz can slip the key in and slide them all the way across, opening up the whole of one side of the van. Inside there is a vinyl fake wooden floor, a diner-style sofa in a light blue colour along the back, a small seat in the same style facing backwards and a white table between the two. All the fittings are white and there are little doors under the sofa-style seats at the back, presumably for extra storage. Moving around to the back of the van, Yaz also opens a large door to access the boot space which has plenty of room for their suitcases, and thankfully, to hang up their wedding clothes and hopefully avoid as many creases as possible.

Both women watch with interest as the agent shows them how the canopy in the ceiling goes up so they can stand up straight, how the table folds down and the back seat converts into a bed and finally how the passenger seat can swivel around to face the main interior of the van. Yaz climbs into the van first, but Jolie hangs back, assessing how to get up the fairly considerable distance between ground and vehicle.

Passing one crutch up to Yaz, she uses the other for balance while she puts her good leg up onto the ledge and uses it to push herself up with her spare hand holding onto the edge of the opening, landing on the sofa seat and then getting the rest of herself in. It’s not exactly painless or elegant, but hopefully she will get better at it with practice. From there she is able to stand up straight in the van with the canopy up and move about easily, making the most of the swivel function of the passenger seat to get into it easily.

“This is so cool,” she enthuses at Yaz, who is sitting in the driver’s seat and adjusting it to the right position for her.

“Ryan’s going to be so jealous,” she giggles, frowning as she tries to work out how to move the seat forward. She does, and pulls it until it’s in the right position for her to drive.

“Oh, we should take a picture!” Jolie starts, making to get out of the van to do just that when she notices something attached to the rear view mirror. Realising it’s a bicycle bell, for whatever reason, childlike curiosity takes over as she leans up to ring it, a small _pting_ sound reverberating through the van. She laughs in glee, and Yaz smiles affectionately beside her.

“C’mon then you big kid, let’s take a picture so we can annoy Ryan. And update mum and dad,” Yaz suggests, and Jolie agrees. Sliding out of the van seems to be a lot easier than getting in it, and they ask the agent to take a photograph of them posing together in front of their temporary mode of transport. After they sign all the paperwork, they make their way back to the van and climb in, Jolie sending a message to their family group chat (containing them, Najia, Hakim, Sonya and Ryan) to give them an update while Yaz drives them back to their small villa.

Jolie [11:48am]: [image] Meet our new friend, Pting, hopefully he’ll get us all the way to Milan with no problems! :)

Ryan [11:52am]: why did you call it Pting?

Jolie [11:52am]: Because there’s a bicycle bell on the rear view mirror and it goes _pting!!!_ when you hit it, obviously :)

Ryan: [11:53am]: obviously

Sonya [11:55am]: you two are children. yaz, you do realise you’re marrying a big kid?

Yaz [12:12pm]: Yep, it’s one of the reasons why I love her

Sonya [12:13pm]: nauseating

* * *

Instead of driving back to their villa, they choose to go straight into the town to grab a lunch, and find a small café at the edge of town serving traditional Portuguese foods. After a light lunch they take some time to explore the outskirts of Lisbon, making sure to take things slowly so that Jolie does not over exert herself. After around an hour of wandering around they head back to the newly named Pting to make the thirty minute drive out to Cabo de Roca, the westernmost point in Europe and the main reason they had chosen to start their honeymoon road trip here in Lisbon.

As they drive, Jolie figures out how to connect her phone to the car radio and half-whoops in glee when a 60’s-playlist starts to blast out the speakers, glad that Yaz is not easily startled when driving. Once Jolie has adjusted the music to a more acceptable level, she looks over to see her fiancée flicking her gaze between her and the road with a puzzled expression on her face.

“Why the music, babe?” She muses, an affectionate smirk pulling the corners of her mouth upwards.

“We’re in a classic 60’s camper van, Yaz! We’ve got to have the music to go with it!”

Yaz shakes her head adoringly in response, eyes focused on the road.

“You know, we picked a really good vehicle for this trip. The 60’s were when everything was changing, young people like us were changing the world. The LGBTQ+ community was gaining traction and finally becoming more visible, we could be openly affectionate in public. If it weren’t for the young people of the 60’s, we might not even be getting married,” she enthuses, hands waving everywhere as she talks. She looks over to see a soft smile on Yaz’s face as she drives, looking out for somewhere to park.

“What?” Jolie asks, feeling self conscious as they find somewhere to stop and Yaz just sits and stares at her.

“I just love you so much. You’re so passionate and excitable, it’s one of my favourite things about you. I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to get to marry you in four days,” Yaz divulges, and Jolie feels burning heat creeping into her cheeks before Yaz even finishes her sentence, and it certainly has nothing to do with the sun shining strongly outside.

“Can’t believe I’m that lucky either,” Jolie admits. “Sometimes I feel the need to pinch myself to remember that the last four and a bit years haven’t been a dream.”

“Same, Jo. But there is definitely a sure-fire way to confirm that this isn’t a dream,” Yaz smirks, her voice soft and quiet in the bubble of their campervan, both of them momentarily forgetting the crowds outside.

“Oh yeah?”

In lieu of a response, Yaz leans over and cups her face, kissing her soundly. Jolie’s hands find their place at the back of Yaz’s neck, playing with her hair, and despite the fact that they’ve done this thousands of times before, warmth and love and affection fizzle with determination inside both of them.

“That’ll do it,” she breathes as they break away.

“Yeah,” Yaz grins, reaching up to tuck Jolie’s hair behind her ear, exposing the cuff earring Yaz bought her for her twenty-third birthday.

“Shall we go and explore then, make the most of our remaining time as fiancées?” Jolie suggests, but instead of agreeing, Yaz clasps a hand to her chest, gasping dramatically.

"Are you going to break up with me!?" she cries.

"What-" Jolie splutters, looking distraught. "No! I meant that we'll be married so we won't be engaged anymore, I didn't mean…"

Yaz’s face breaks out into a grin. "I know. Just messing with you, babe."

"You're mean," the blonde pouts until Yaz pulls her back towards her and kisses the crown of her head.

"Okay, no you're not. I love you really."

"Love you too, hummingbird...shall we make the most of the rest of the day and go stare at the ocean then?"

“That sounds great.”

Together they get out of the van, locking it and strolling towards the lighthouse, Jolie abandoning one crutch in favour of looping an arm through Yaz’s. They walk slowly, knowing they have plenty of time, and simply enjoy the scenery around them. The lighthouse itself is actually quite short in comparison to a lot of other lighthouses, and the base looks more like a school house than anything else. Unfortunately for Jolie, the surrounding courtyard is uneven with cobblestones and she picks her way across it carefully, very aware that Yaz is right beside her and ready to catch her if she falls. They make it inside successfully and have a slow look around; it is surprisingly light and airy inside, despite the age of the building. They quickly realise that there is no way they could be able to get to the top; even if Jolie weren’t on crutches today, the stairs would be far too steep for her to get up. However the views from the base of the lighthouse are enough to satisfy them. Well, ‘enough’ might be an understatement, they are stunning, and both women take a sharp intake of breath as they lean against one of the windows.

“Wow,” Jolie breathes, resting her elbow on the sill of the window and allowing her chin to land in her palm.

“Yeah. I’m glad we picked to start out here, this is gorgeous,” Yaz agrees, resting her head against Jolie’s shoulder as they gaze out the window.

“Not as gorgeous as you,” Jolie whispers, tilting her head to press an awkward kiss to Yaz’s temple.

“Eww, you soppy idiot,” Yaz whines, wiping at her forehead with the edge of her jacket tied around her waist.

“But a loveable soppy idiot,” Jolie counters, and Yaz hums in confirmation.

“Come on then, do you want to go and look out at the top of the path?” She suggests, and Jolie agrees, looping her arm back through Yaz’s so they can make their way out of the lighthouse and up to the point itself. It turns out that the path is so steep and uneven that Yaz ends up carrying Jolie up in a piggy back, depositing her carefully where she can lean against the railing once they reach the top of the path.

“Is it not weird to think that there’s nothing in that direction, for thousands of miles, until you hit the American coast?” Yaz muses, looking over at her fiancée. But, to her concern, Jolie has a deep set frown on her face and is chewing her bottom lip.

“Hey, don’t do that, “ Yaz chides gently, squeezing her waist. “What’s up?”

“My family’s out there. My dad’s brother, my uncle. I know I’ve got cousins too. But I don’t even know if they know I exist, yet they’re the only blood family I’ve got left. Don’t get me wrong, I love my family here, and I wouldn’t trade any of you for the world, but it’s weird to think about sometimes,” she admits, gripping onto the wooden railing until her knuckles turn white.

“Do you think about it often?” Yaz asks, because really, she cannot come up with a better response. Jolie shakes her head.

“Not really, only when something reminds me of it. Like now,” she shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly, but five and a half years together means that Yaz sees straight through the front she is putting up.

“It’s okay to feel weird about it, y’know,” she reassures, and Jolie sighs.

“Yeah, I know. It’s just, I don’t even know if I want to know them, because I just don’t know how many there are now. I could have dozens of relatives that I don’t even know about.”

Yaz lets the silence, bar the crashing of the waves and the chatter of other tourists, sit for a second while she processes her fiancée’s train of thought.

“If you wanted to find them, I would support you one hundred percent,” she confirms. “And if you didn’t, just the same.”

Jolie smiles in gratitude, resting her cheek against Yaz’s temple.

“Yeah, just not sure how I would even go about finding them. There must be tens of thousands of Smiths in the country.”

“True. But I’m sure you’d find a way, it’s not like you to give up on something as soon as you hit the first hurdle. And we’d all help you if you decided that’s what you wanted to do.”

Jolie smiles again, kissing Yaz’s head before she pushes away from the railing and stands up straighter, clearing her throat. Yaz pretends to not notice the small amount of moisture leaking from the corners of her eyes.

“Right, enough emotions for today, we need to save all those for the wedding day. Want to go lie on the grass and see how many stupid things we can find in the clouds?” She asks with a mischievous grin.

“Absolutely, I’ll always go cloud spotting with you.”

* * *

When their alarm blares at 5am the next morning, Yaz starts to seriously regret their decision to make the drive all the way to Valencia in one day, because at this moment, ten hours in their little van is not sounding particularly appealing. Although she is regretting the early start, she definitely isn’t regretting how late they stayed up last night, wrapped in each other until the early hours of the morning, meaning both of them are running on very little sleep. 

Silencing her alarm, Yaz sits up to stop herself from falling back asleep and looks down at the snoring form of her fiancée next to her, not even disturbed in the slightest by the loud, high-pitched tone of the alarm. Leaning over, Yaz puts a hand on her bare shoulder, shaking gently.

“C’mon love, up you get,” she encourages, but she earns no more than a particularly loud snore and a kick in the shin for her efforts.

“Come on you big lump, we need to get moving,” she tries again, shaking a little more firmly.

This time Jolie tries to bat her away with her hands as she flops her head over, ruffled blonde hair obscuring most of her face and one of her eyes squinting open.

“Good morning,” Yaz giggles, pushing her hair out of her face for her.

“Nothin’ good ‘bout it,” she grumbles, pressing her face back into the pillow and curling the sheet up so it covers her head more.

“Nope, can’t let you sleep, Jo. We need to shower and get dressed and eat so we can start driving if we want to get there at a decent time,” Yaz persuades, pulling the sheet away again to reveal her fiancée’s bare back. When Jolie still doesn’t move, Yaz moves her feet, which she _knows_ will be cold, and places the soles against her exposed skin.

“Ahh!” She shouts, pushing Yaz away and sitting up. “That were mean!”

“Well I had to get you up for the shower,” Yaz teases, standing up. She smirks as Jolie’s mouth falls open when she realises that Yaz is still wearing as much as she was last night; aka, not a lot.

“Shower together?” She asks, a hopeful if cheeky grin lighting up her features.

“I knew that would get you out of bed.”

* * *

By lunchtime and after only one stop along the way, they reach Madrid where they plan to spend a couple of hours getting lunch and exploring the city a little bit before they drive the last four hours across the country to Valencia.

After finally finding a place to park their van, which proved harder than they had predicted, Yaz switches the engine off and stretches out like a cat as best she can in the small space, rubbing her eyes as she settles back into the seat again.

“You okay to move now or do you want a bit of a break?” Jolie asks, looking over at Yaz beside her.

“Nah, I’m good, I need to stretch my legs, and I’m hungry to be honest. Are you okay to walk or do you want to see if we can get a bus into the city centre or something?” Yaz replies.

“Nope, I’m the same. I need to stretch my legs. Give me an arm though?”

“Always.”

After getting out of their van, they are surprised to quickly come across a whole street of bars and restaurants, and after little deliberation thanks to their rumbling stomachs, they settle on one of the first tapas bars they come across. Eager to try everything, they order a sharing platter with several, even smaller than usual, tapas dishes and work their way through it quickly and eagerly. 

After a pleasant lunch, they wander slowly around the city centre for a while, taking in the sights of the Royal Palace, the Plaza Mayor, the Barrio de Las Letras and finally finishing up at the Puente de Toledo. Both of them find that they are wishing they could spend more time here, but the heat of the midday May sun beating down on them and a pressing deadline to make it to Valencia force them to head back to their van, hand in hand.

Later that evening, when they do finally make it to the hotel they will be staying in, they barely make it through the door before they are crawling into bed, Yaz’s head on Jolie’s chest and she strokes her hair, helping her fiancée relax after a long day of driving.

* * *

The next morning they make it to the world-famous Valencia aquarium a little before the public opening time, because they have a brunch booking in the submarine restaurant, and Yaz knows that Jolie could not be more ecstatic. Especially when the host leads them to a table right up alongside the glass wall looking into the impossibly large tank, and Jolie’s jaw drops.

“How did we get this good of a table?” She exclaims, picking up her menu to start flicking through it but immediately getting distracted as a school of fish glides lazily past. With how long Jolie can sit and stare at their tank with only four fish at home, Yaz has a feeling this breakfast may take a while longer than normal.

“I may have told them beforehand that we’re on our honeymoon and that you love aquariums,” Yaz smirks, picking up her own menu to begin perusing.

“You’re amazin’,” Jolie breathes distractedly as her attention is caught by an even bigger fish.

“You’re welcome. Now pay attention to your menu for a few minutes so we can order and then you can gaze at the fish all you like,” Yaz instructs gently, and Jolie grins before tearing her attention away from the glass wall and to her menu. It may be the quickest meal decision she makes in her life; settling on a stack of raspberry and nutella pancakes before she shoves her menu back in Yaz’s direction and returns to watch the fish in awe. 

Of course, though, Yaz is not mad that Jolie’s attention is on the underwater creatures and not her; she had suggested this day out in particular because she knows how much Jolie will enjoy it, and hopefully calm any pre-wedding jitters either of them will have. Not that Yaz is having many as she gazes at the woman across from her, sharp cheekbones highlighted in the soft, deep blue light in contrast with the soft expression of awe and calm on her face as she watches the fish contentedly.

After a big but slightly drawn out breakfast of pancakes and waffles, in which Yaz had to remind Jolie more than once to eat her food before it got cold, they head out into the rest of the aquarium to take in as much as they possibly can.

First off they walk past the flamingos, but they do not stay for too long as the sheer racket that the animals make, combined with the heat of the sun and the bustle of the crowds starts to get too much for both of them, so they wander inside to the wetlands dome.

Although it echoes a lot, the numerous waterfalls and atmospheric sounds played over speakers create a pleasant sense of calm as they wander hand in hand through the raised pathways. However it is hot and humid, so, seeking even more cool air, they make their way to the more traditional aquarium space where they come across the touch tanks.

Like big kids, they both (but especially Jolie) get stuck in with the activities, a very eager staff member explaining to them in heavily accented English what all the different creatures are, their importance to the ocean’s ecosystem and fun facts that they probably didn’t need to know, but do now. Yaz tunes out a little as Jolie listens, enraptured, although she is quite happy to let her fiancée enjoy herself. Well, until a starfish is placed in her open palm and she gives an immediate squeak of discomfort.

“Yaz, I don’t like it, it feels weird,” she says urgently, biting her lip. Unfortunately for Jolie, the staff member has turned their attention to a child next to them, and so she is stuck holding it. Glancing around the room, Yaz sees someone on the other side of the tank lower their hands into the water and just sort of...let go of the starfish, so she instructs Jolie to do the same.

“Here, just lower your hands into the water gently,” she guides her, grabbing her wrists and moving them down for her. “There, and just let go, it’ll be fine.”

Jolie breathes a sigh of relief as she watches the little creature sink to the bottom of the tank, and she shakes her hands out.

“Wasn’t too sure about that, it felt weird,” she admits, scrunching her nose and tilting her head in her usual fashion.

“That’s alright, it’s not for everyone. You’re braver than me though, I didn’t even try!”

Jolie grins sheepishly before adjusting her backpack over her shoulders and wandering slowly over to the sanitising station. Yaz follows, and they both clean their hands before heading out of the room and off to locate the sea turtle refuge to watch the talk while they have their picnic lunch.

Both women settle onto the bottom of the stepped seats in front of the turtle pool with their pre-made packed lunches, grateful for the large shades overhead providing a break from the sun as they work their way through sandwiches and bags of crisps, listening to the talk in earnest. Yaz herself had not even realised that there _were_ turtles off the Spanish coast, she has always associated them with much more tropical climates, but Jolie of course had given her a bit of a run-down yesterday in the van, her animal obsession showing itself in full force and in the most adorable way.

The small crowd _oohs_ and _ahhs_ appreciatively when the babies are brought out, and Yaz leans forward on her knees to listen attentively. So much so that she does not initially register what is happening when the staff member points at her, and Jolie has to nudge her to bring her back to the present.

“Huh?”

 _“La mujer con la gorra de béisbol._ The woman with the baseball cap!” The staff member is calling over the microphone, pointing at Yaz.

Yaz points to her chest as if to say _are you talking about me?_ And when they nod enthusiastically, beckoning her towards them, she stands up and makes her way to the front.

“English?” The staff member asks her away from the microphone, and Yaz nods.

“Right then, what is your name?”

“Yaz.”

“Well, welcome to the Valencia aquarium, Yaz. Are you having fun so far today?”

“Very much so,” Yaz grins, looking towards the audience to see that Jolie already has her phone out and is holding it up to either record or take photos. Yaz shakes her head fondly, smiling at her when she gives a goofy thumbs up of encouragement.

“That’s what we like to hear. Are you visiting with anyone today?”

Yaz smiles to herself, looking over to Jolie again. “Yeah, my fiancée, Jolie.”

“That’s lovely, I hope you’re having a great time! Now, Yaz, are you up for helping us feed these turtles?”

Yaz nods enthusiastically, and listens attentively to the instructions she is given. She thoroughly enjoys herself, and by the time the talk finishes and she makes her way back to Jolie, she is grinning ear to ear.

“Yaz, that were amazing! You were so good,” she beams, and Yaz’s heart flutters.

“It was nothing, I were just following the instructions.”

“Well you followed the instructions very well, well done to you. Although I am a bit jealous,” she admits sheepishly, and Yaz giggles.

“I know, babe. If I had known what was happening I would have let you go up there instead,” Yaz reasons.

“No! It’s fine, I’m glad you had fun, and it were fun to watch you, you were really enjoying yourself,” Jolie reassures, holding a hand out for Yaz to give her a pull up from the concrete steps before they pack up and make their way around more of the aquarium.

Throughout the course of the afternoon, they make their way around the majority of the rest of the aquarium, even able to catch two more educational talks for the penguins and the crocodiles among their route through the aquarium. Although they are saving the best until last.

“Jo, what’s the difference between crocodiles and alligators?” Yaz asks and they walk arm in arm towards the last attraction of the day.

“There are quite a few differences, actually. Crocodiles have longer, pointier snouts whereas alligators have shorter, more rounded snouts. When an alligator has its mouth shut, you won't see any of its teeth. But when a crocodile does, its back teeth stick up over the top lip and they look way more fierce.. They live in different environments too, crocodiles exist both in freshwater and saltwater, whereas alligators prefer freshwater environments. The Florida Everglades is the only place on earth in which both alligators and crocodiles coexist,” she rambles, and Yaz listens in contentment as they move slowly.

She continues her wildlife rambles all the way until they reach the last attraction of the day; the underwater tunnel, and Jolie falls silent, her jaw dropping open.

Over their heads, all manner of marine life floats past lazily; colourful fish, rays, even sharks.

“Woah,” the blonde breathes, gravitating towards the glass and pressing herself up against it, so close that her breath clouds the glass. It is quite noisy in the tunnel, it being a popular attraction, but both women find that that all falls away with the sense of calm the surrounding water exudes, slowing them down from the hectic pace of the last few days. Just in time for their wedding in two days.

Yaz encourages Jolie to sit down next to her on a bench along the side so they can gaze up into the water. Jolie rests her head on Yaz’s shoulder with a sigh, winding an arm around her waist, and she does not have to say anything for Yaz to know what the gesture means. At that moment, it really hits her that this is the woman she is marrying, this is the woman that she will spend the rest of her life with, and this is the woman that cares more for her than anything else in the world. Yaz thinks that nothing else could even come close to that, and that she is incredibly lucky to have found her person in life.

* * *

"Auntie Yaz, Auntie Jolie!" Two year old Isaac yells as soon as the video call connects, his little face taking up the majority of the screen and completely obscuring Clara from view.

"Hey bud!" Jolie laughs, and from beside her, Yaz joins in, albeit with a little less enthusiasm; she is exhausted.

“Isaac, come on, sit down nicely please,” Clara reasons with him, letting out a relieved sigh when he plops down into her lap and wriggles around until he is comfortable.

“Good boy, thank you,” she praises, kissing his curls before looking at the screen to regard two of her best friends.

“So! How’s the trip so far?” She asks, raising her eyebrows with a curious grin.

“It’s amazing,” Yaz divulges through a sip of her water. “Tiring so far though, a lot of driving.”

“I can imagine. Your van looks cool though, doesn’t it Isaac? Remember the pictures they sent us?” Clara replies, tilting her head to look down at her son.

“Yes! It looks like custard,” he giggles, and Jolie and Yaz join in.

“Actually, you’re right, it does! We didn’t think of that, we might have to rename it.”

“It has a name already,” Yaz points out, and Jolie hums in agreement.

“Well maybe we’ll just have to eat plenty of custard in it then!” Jolie laughs, and Isaac giggles with glee at the idea.

“Hey, Isaac. Why don’t you remind Auntie Yaz and Auntie Jolie what’s happening next week?” Clara prompts, but Isaac scrunches his face up in confusion and twists himself around to look up at her. Leaning down to whisper in his ear, his aunts watch in amusement as his facial expression changes as he is reminded of the relevant information.

“Oh yes!” He cries, bouncing up and down on Clara’s lap in excitement. “Daddy is coming home next week!” He exclaims, and Yaz simply raises her eyebrows in surprise. While Danny does come home more often now, it is unusual for him to do so early. She allows Jolie to take the lead in the conversation while her mind wanders.

Yaz has to admit, she still feels strange about Danny and Clara’s relationship. It had been rocky when Danny had first started to be deployed abroad, and they had almost broken up more than once. In fact, although they hadn’t actively encouraged it, she and Jolie had tried to make Clara see reason, their friend had remained adamant about making it work, for Isaac’s sake at least. Shortly after their son’s first birthday, it had been like something had flipped in their relationship and Danny had started making much more of an effort to be present in Isaac’s life, whether he was in the country or not. However, it still feels a little like a ticking time bomb to Yaz, she is not sure how long they will be able to sustain such a setup.

Shaking her wandering thoughts from her head, she turns her attention back to the screen where Jolie is busy describing their visit to the aquarium in extensive detail to Isaac, complete with dramatic hand gestures and facial expressions as she describes the underwater tunnel, the crocodiles and the sea lions. 

“...Actually bud, I think we might have to cut the call off here, Auntie Yaz is looking pretty tired.”

Jolie mentioning her name brings her back to the present, and she blinks as she unsuccessfully tries to hide a yawn behind her palm.

“That sounds like a good idea, she looks like she’s going to fall asleep where she’s sitting,” Clara laughs, and Yaz scowls at her playfully.

“Driving across the entire Iberian Peninsula in one day and then going to the biggest aquarium in Europe with this one the next really does take its toll,” she smiles, nodding her head towards Jolie before letting it come to rest on her shoulder.

“Hey! I weren’t that bad!” Jolie protests, despite knowing it is futile.

“You’re as much of a kid as Isaac, babe...anyway, we’ll say our goodnights.”

Clara nods as Isaac blows them a kiss down the camera before jumping down from Clara’s lap and scampering off somewhere.

“Right, well I’ll call you the morning of the ceremony then?” Clara asks, hopefully.

“Absolutely, talk to you in a few days!”

“Talk to you in a few days, bye!”


	2. Wedding (I)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhhh it's the wedding!!!! Enjoy!!

The morning of Yasmin Khan’s wedding day does not start in the way that she expects it to; that being, her soon-to-be wife sneezing so loudly that it wakes her up. Rolling over in bed, she scowls at her as Jolie grins back sheepishly, her hair mussed like it always is in the morning and her cheeks tinged a light rouge.

“Well good morning to me,” Yaz grumbles, sitting up and shuffling over to press herself up against Jolie as the blonde puts her book down. Automatically, the other woman raises an arm for Yaz to duck under and snuggle into her. Despite the slightly rude awakening, it is also their wedding day and so Yaz cannot be mad at her for long, the overwhelming love she is feeling towards her taking over and pushing any negative thoughts out of the window.

“Morning,” Jolie grins, kissing her forehead.

“We’re getting married today,” she states, running her fingers through Yaz’s hair and down her back.

“We are...how do you feel?”

Jolie scrunches her face up in thoughts, her fingers pausing their movements. “A little bit nervous, I guess. I’m not nervous to actually marry you, because there’s nothing I want more. Just scared that my outfit will have gotten ripped or I’ll fall when we’re walking down the aisle or something,” she admits, shrugging her shoulders awkwardly.

“I’ll not let you fall, babe. That’s why we’re walking down the aisle together,” Yaz reminds her, squeezing her waist. “And I’m sure our outfits will be fine, we checked them after we landed in Portugal and we’ve been super careful with them since then.”

Jolie smiles sheepishly, resting her cheek against the top of Yaz’s hair.

“Right yeah … I’m just overthinking things.”

“That’s okay, I know it’s what you do. But you do well at sharing those worries with me.”

Jolie breathes a sigh, shifting a little so she can entangle her legs with Yaz’s. “I’m so lucky to be marrying you. Nobody gets me like you do, Yaz.”

“Right back at you babe,” Yaz replies, kissing her cheek before sitting up and stretching out her slightly stiff limbs like a cat. They had driven all the way up the coast yesterday to the town of Vic where they are staying, just outside of Barcelona. Although it had not been as long from the drive from Portugal to Valencia, sitting in a campervan most of the day is still leaving them both a bit uncomfortable.

“I think I might need a bit of a stretch this morning before we go up to the farmhouse to get ready,” Jolie admits. “Feeling a bit stiff, don’t fancy tripping as we walk down the aisle.”

Yaz stands up, shaking her legs and arms out before grabbing Jolie’s crutches for her and passing them over; she needs them almost every morning now, at the very least.

They head into the small bathroom to get ready, before Jolie locates a thick blanket to use a substitute yoga mat for a quick stretch while Yaz sits on the bed and reads her book, something she had not had much of a chance to do the last few days, with all the driving. Once Jolie is done, Yaz helps her up and they triple check they have everything they could possibly need before checking out of the guest house and driving out of town, through sprawling fields and part way up one of the surrounding mountains to where the tenth-century restored farmhouse is located in which their wedding will take place.

* * *

“Right, does my dress look okay?” Yaz asks tentatively to the laptop balanced on the armchair in the corner, smoothing down the fabric with her hands for the millionth time. It is a simple dress, white with a small amount of lace detailing, knee-length and with a sweetheart neckline and spaghetti straps. Compared to most wedding dresses, it is fairly plain and certainly did not cost as much as most would, but they had wanted to keep things simple and put most of their budget towards their trip. 

“You’re backlit from the window, Yaz, you need to move,” Clara says, and Najia hums in agreement. Once Jolie has moved the laptop for her and Yaz has shifted where she is standing, she turns to look at her mum and her best friend shyly.

“So, what do you think?”

“Yaz, you look  _ stunning.  _ With your hair done and everything, even better than in the shop,” Clara reassures, and Yaz breathes a sigh of relief. But looking to the other side of the screen, she sees that her mum is already close to tears.

“Najia, are you crying already?” Clara laughs, and the woman in question breathes a teary laugh.

“I can’t help it, my baby is getting married!” She protests, and the other three women chuckle in amusement. 

“You’re going to be even more of a wreck when we do the ceremony back home, aren’t you?” Jolie quips cheekily from where she is sitting at the dressing table, fiddling with the delicate star garland that Yaz had already woven into her hair for her.

“You can’t deny it, Najia,” Clara adds as Yaz picks up the laptop and carries it over to where Jolie is sitting and squashing onto the chair next to her, careful not to crease her pale, duck-egg blue jumpsuit that she had picked out to wear for the ceremony.

“Here, let me fix it for you,” she murmurs, reaching up to delicately weave a few of Jolie’s loose strands of hair into the garland before arranging a few to frame her face.

“There you go, gorgeous.”

“Your opinion is a bit biased, Yaz,” Jolie pouts, turning to the screen shyly. Yaz knows that her fiancée is slightly unsure about her outfit choice, it being a lot more delicate and pale-coloured than she is used to, but she had picked it out herself and had told Yaz to encourage her to wear it, knowing that it would look good on her.

“She’s right, you look stunning, love,” Najia affirms, and Jolie blushes a dusty pink under her thin layer of makeup.

“Thank you,” she replies shyly, fiddling with the pendant resting at the base of her neck as her eyes flick towards Yaz for reassurance. Seconds later, an arm winds itself around her waist and squeezes gently. She lets out a steadying breath.

Glancing at the time on her phone, Yaz sighs with regret.

“We’re probably going to have to say goodbye now, we’ll be needed down on the patio in about twenty minutes,” she explains, and both Najia and Clara nod.

“Well, enjoy yourselves, I hope the weather holds up for you,” Clara says with a smile, and Yaz beams back. Although it is unfortunate that they do not have their family and closest friends here with them for the ceremony, they will when they go home and at least they have video calls to substitute as best they can.

“Yes, have the best time, and remember to just live in the moment. Don’t worry about the video or the photographer or anything, just focus on each other, alright?” Najia instructs, and Yaz rolls her eyes.

“Yes mum,” she chimes, causing both Clara and Jolie to giggle.

“Hey, you might be getting married, but I’m still your mum!” She replies, and Yaz grins.

They bid their final goodbyes before cutting the call off and letting the strange silence sit for a moment.

“Ready?” Jolie asks, twisting in the chair to face Yaz.

“I’m so ready.”

* * *

Standing at the top of the short, slightly uneven flagstone path that constitutes for the aisle, Jolie takes a steadying breath. While it might only be them and a few other people present, nobody of any real importance to them, a fall would almost certainly ruin their wedding day. Correctly interpreting her barely noticeable intake of breath, Yaz reaches over and squeezes Jolie’s forearm that is looped through her own, holding her steady. 

“I’ll not let you fall,” she murmurs, and Jolie lets out a long, even breath. Of course Yaz won’t let her fall. Yaz will never let her fall, that is why she is marrying her.

“I know you won’t … Ready?”

With a nod, they start their careful walk down the path to where an officiant is waiting for them, smiling broadly. There is no music; in the end, no song had seemed right for the occasion and therefore they had chosen to simply walk to the sounds of the Catalunian forest and mountains; birdsong, rustling trees and the distant sound of a rushing river. Once they reach the front, Yaz gently untangles her arm from Jolie’s and takes both her hands in hers, turning together so they are face to face with each other.

Automatically, Jolie strokes her thumbs over the back of Yaz’s hands, smirking at the slight shiver it draws from her. 

She can also see where the videographer is concealed to one side, capturing the whole thing on film so their family and friends can see when they get home. And so they can watch it back, of course.

“Yasmin Khan and Jolene Elizabeth Smith, I trust we are here today to join you both into marriage and for you to make promises to each other. Is that correct?”

Both women nod, and so the officiant proceeds.

“Marriage is not easy, marriage is tough. Marriage will be the hardest moments of your life, but also the best. By making this commitment to each other, you are also making a commitment to yourselves to love and cherish your spouse no matter what happens, and to love yourself in the same way. You are committing to sharing the rest of your life with your spouse, and there is something so uniquely special about that. Now … I believe you would like to articulate that commitment to each other, which of you would like to go first?”

Jolie raises her eyebrows at Yaz, and with a subtle nod, Jolie pulls the neatly folded piece of paper from her pocket. Originally she had wanted to memorise what she wanted to say to Yaz, but after getting herself in a complete panic about the possibility of forgetting it all on the spot, Yaz had reassured her that she could read what she had written from a piece of paper instead.

“Yasmin Khan, when you came into my life, I really didn’t know where I was headed. I think I was running; I was running away from my grief and a place where nobody I knew was a true friend. I was alone in a new and strange city, out of my depth and hoping that it would be the new start I needed. What I didn’t know is that I would meet the woman who would come to change my life in the best way possible.

Because, Yaz, when I met you, I stopped running, because I didn’t feel so lost anymore. It sounds so cheesy, but you feel like home to me, and there is no feeling comparable to that. You have seen me at my worst, and you have looked after me at my worst, and never once have you faltered. Yes, you have had to take a step back, but that is not a sign of weakness, that is a sign of strength. You recognised when you were struggling and you found help, and that is sure proof that you are one of the strongest people I know.

So, this is the promise I want to make to you, Yasmin Khan. I promise to love you and care for you as long as I can. Whether that means taking you on a fancy date, or holding you when you’re down, or eating chocolate with you at 3am because you’re having a crisis and you can’t sleep. I promise to show the same love to our friends and family, whether those are friends and family we have now or any we might have in the future. I will love you, and anything that comes with you, unconditionally.”

When she finishes, she realises Yaz is in floods of tears. So, pocketing the paper, she reaches forward and draws her into a hug, squeezing her tightly before letting her go slightly and dotting kisses over her face.

“I’m fine, I’m good,” Yaz giggles, and so Jolie leans backwards.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure,” she affirms, reaching up to cup Jolie’s cheek. “My turn to make you cry now,” she giggles, and Jolie echoes it. Yaz drops her hand away from her cheek, clasping their hands together and running her thumb over the small purple pansy tattooed on the inside of Jolie’s left wrist.

“Funnily enough, what you just told me is very similar to what I would like to tell you. You quite literally fell into my life and changed it for the better. I know I’ve told you this before, but I was struggling to love and trust again, both myself and other people. But you were patient and kind in the way that other people weren’t, and now I can confidently say that I would trust you with my life.

Every day I see you, I admire how incredible of a person you have become since I met you. You’ve grown so much and become the best person I know. You’ve grown on your own but we’ve grown together. You strive to better yourself every day, even if that is just one tiny action, and that is a sign of such a strong, incredible person. A strong, incredible person who I am so unbelievably lucky to be able to call  _ my  _ person.

So, Jolie, this is the promise I will make to you. I promise to stand by you through whatever may face us in the future, because I promise to do everything I can to help you be that incredible and strong person I know you are. I promise to be by you when you are struggling, and help you get back to your feet no matter how difficult that might be. I promise to love you, our pets, and any future children we may have, unconditionally, and I promise to support you in whatever choices you make regarding your biological family. Like you said; I promise to love you, and anything that comes with you, unconditionally.”

Now it is Jolie’s turn to cry quietly, breathing out a shaky laugh of jubilation as Yaz draws her into a warm embrace before pressing a kiss to the ink on the inside of her left wrist.

The officiant respectfully gives them a moment to compose themselves before speaking up again.

“With these promises, you are making a lifelong commitment to each other. Are you ready to symbolise that commitment with the exchanging of rings?”

Jolie and Yaz nod simultaneously and then Jolie pulls the identical rings out of her pocket, handing one over to Yaz. They are simple, silver bands, plain on the outside but with engravings on the inside that will only be known to them;  _ Like hope, love abides.  _ Yaz holds her left hand out first, allowing Jolie to slip the wedding band on next to her engagement ring. She presses a kiss to her fingers before lowering her hand back down and raising her own left hand. Yaz repeats the actions, before joining their hands together and looking down at the matching rings, just like they did a year and a half ago at the top of a hill on the edge of Sheffield.

“Congratulations, I now pronounce you, married.”

* * *

A little later, after the rest of the people who were present for their ceremony have disappeared, Jolie and Yaz find that they have the gardens to themselves. Well, almost to themselves; Jolie knows that there is one person left in the corner of the formal gardens, and she catches their eye through a thicket of trees as she strolls along the path arm in arm with Yaz. Seconds later, soft piano notes start to ring out through the speakers carefully hidden among the flower beds, and Yaz stops in surprise.

“Where’s that music coming from?” She asks, turning to Jolie in confusion.

“Everywhere,” she replies simply, shrugging her shoulders with a smirk.

“Wait...it’s  _ that _ song,” she gasps, turning to face Jolie and clasping her hands in hers. “This is the song we danced to when we said we loved each other for the first time!”

“Yeah…” Jolie smiles, gently guiding Yaz over to the edge of the garden where there is a relatively flat paved area, surrounded by a stone balustrade providing a perfect view of the valley below.

“Dance with me?” She asks. When Yaz nods, she tugs on her hand lightly so Yaz spins towards her, almost falling before Jolie dips her shallowly, as far as she can, kissing her soundly.

“Smooth, I’m impressed,” Yaz croons.

“You know me, I’m all about the smooth moves.”

Yaz snorts, breaking the rhythm of their slow swaying in time to the music.

“Hey!”

“Sorry, babe. But your moves have never been smooth.”

“Gee ta, what a way to compliment your wife,” Jolie teases with a playful scowl.

“Ahh, didn’t marry you for your not-smooth moves anyway. I married you for your dedication, your unending love, your stupid sense of humour, your unique sense of style, your strength…the list goes on and on, love.”

Jolie sniffs hard against stubborn tears, momentarily squeezing Yaz’s waist tighter before resting her chin on her shoulder.

“You’re gonna make me cry again,” she protests weakly, focusing on the grounding weight of Yaz’s arms over her shoulders.

“Well, weddings are for happy tears,” Yaz reasons, and Jolie nods, leaning back to press a gentle kiss to Yaz’s lips.

“Well, I married you for your love too, but also your ability to make me laugh even when I’m having the worst day. Your determination to keep going, your devotion to helping other people. Your amazing cheesy pasta bake.”

Yaz interrupts with a giggle, and Jolie smiles at her.

“Point is, we did marry each other for those big, important things, but we married each other for the little things too. And I think those are more important. It’s like a machine, you need all the big components to build the base of it, but it’s the tiny little parts in between, the ones that are unique to  _ that _ machine, that make it function.”

“I think we both made a great choice then, didn’t we?” Yaz replies, and Jolie embraces her tighter.

“Yeah, we did.”

* * *

Later that evening, after they have both changed out of their wedding clothes and into something comfier, they settle at a table on the veranda, specially set out for them by the owner of the farmhouse. Candles litter the ground and the top of the balustrade, casting everything in a soft glow. Once they are seated with glasses of water each, the owner of the farmhouse comes out to serve them her homemade vegetable paella, a large plate each. Jolie thanks her as it is placed down in front of them, steam rising from it and spreading a heavenly aroma into the air.

“Oh my god, this smells amazing,” she grins, bringing a forkful to her mouth.

“Jo! Careful! It’ll be … hot,” Yaz trails off, muting a laugh behind her palm as Jolie pants desperately before taking a large drink of water.

“Every time,” she sighs, shaking her head.

“Tastes good, though,” she mumbles around her glass, and Yaz laughs affectionately.

“It’ll taste even better in a minute when you don’t burn yourself with every mouthful!” Yaz teases, and Jolie sticks her slightly burnt tongue out at her in retaliation. However she does wait a few more minutes for her food to cool before taking another bite, and, as Yaz predicted, it is even more heavenly than the last.

They work their way through the meal quickly, exchanging knowing glances about where this evening will inevitably lead, but enjoying the high of being newlyweds.

“Is it weird that I can’t wait to get home to change our surnames?” Yaz asks as she pushes the last of the rice around her plate to scoop it up before popping it in her mouth.

“Nah, I’m excited too. Can’t wait to be Mrs Smith-Khan,” Jolie grins, leaning forward to take Yaz’s left hand in hers and fiddle with the two rings on her finger.

“Good, ‘cause I can’t wait to be Mrs Khan-Smith,” Yaz echoes back, placing her fork down and kissing the back of Jolie’s hands.

“Yaz..”

“Yeah?”

“You’ve made my hand yellow,” she giggles, leaning forward to inspect it.

“Have I? How come?”

“It’s the saffron in the paella, stains you yellow...smile at me?” Jolie asks, and Yaz obliges with a shy smile.

“Yeah, you’re a touch yellow. Am I?” She giggles, giving Yaz an extremely toothy grin to assess.

“Like a lemon, babe,” she laughs, handing her a napkin to at least wipe off some of the staining around her mouth.

After a few more minutes of idle chatter, Jolie finds her gaze drifting to the night sky behind Yaz, now that the sun has set, and how incredibly clear it is. 

“Yaz, do you want to do some stargazing?” She asks, and not at all to her surprise, her wife nods with enthusiasm.

And so they head inside the farmhouse to locate the owner, who, when hearing about their plans, insists on showing them the best spot as well as providing them with a couple of blankets and pillows to make themselves more comfortable. Fifteen minutes later, they find themselves lying on the soft grass just outside their guest-house, blanket and pillows under them with another blanket draped over the top for warmth as the cool air of the night descends down the side of the mountain, creating a sharp chill to the air.

“Shame there’s no shooting stars like on your birthday,” Yaz murmurs, sighing happily as Jolie guides her head to rest on her chest so Yaz can listen to the steady thumping of her wife’s heartbeat.

“S’fine, I’ve got you. Don’t need any,” she whispers back, running her fingers through the hair that rests on Yaz’s back.

“God, you’re sappy.”

“I’m already a sap, Yaz. I don’t know what else you expected on our wedding day.”

“True.”

Yaz sighs happily, cuddling further into Jolie as they gaze at the inky blackness above them, and the stars punctuating that inky blackness with a soft glow. Tilting her head to look up at her wife, she smiles softly at the way her features glow in the moonlight, highlighting her cheekbones and jawline but smoothing out the rest of her face. It makes her look like a famous painting.

“Jo?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m so happy. And I love you.”

“I love you too, Yaz. And I couldn’t be happier.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading!! I would love to know what you all thought :)
> 
> I'm having a bit of a crisis of confidence with this story (yes, already) so I'm not sure if updates will be regular like I originally said. I have a lot of it planned out but it currently feels very flat and slow so I feel like it needs some reworking. We'll see what happens!


	3. Quiet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The final honeymoon chapter!! Hope you all enjoy :)

“A reservation under Khan-Smith please,” Jolie says with a smile as they step up to the front desk of the guest house they are staying in for the next couple of nights in a small, fairly touristy town on the Southern French coast. 

“Is that one name or two separate names?” The hostess asks, looking at them in slight confusion. She is younger than they had expected, judging by the decoration and style of the building. The building itself looks impossibly old; all thick, whitewashed walls and immaculate gardens, but the inside, while still having influences of an older style, is surprisingly modern and clean with a lot of blue accents. The whole thing seems very beachy. Which is apt, given that they are on the Mediterranean coast.

“Erm, kind of both. We’re just married,” she explains, and the hostess’ face lights up.

“Oh! Well in that case, just give me a moment…” she tails off, getting up and going through a small door behind the reception desk. Yaz looks at Jolie, who just shrugs before she turns her gaze to look back out the open windows at the other side of the sitting area next to the front desk. Directly outside there is a tiled, three-sided courtyard with a small swimming pool and a few sunbeds, and beyond that through the fence is the ocean, sparkling a deep turquoise. It looks inviting and Jolie can’t wait to go swimming. It’s one of her favourite activities.

When the woman comes back she smiles at them before sitting down and tapping something into the computer.

“Since you’re on your honeymoon we can upgrade your room for free,” she explains. “It’s the best suite in the place; you have your own private balcony and a great view of the sea. How does that sound?“

Yaz and Jolie look at each other for a brief moment before turning back to the young woman.

“That sounds great, thank you very much,” Jolie replies with a grin, tapping her fingers against the wooden surface of the desk in excitement.

“Okay, I’ll get you all set up here and then I’ll show you down to the room,” she says, smiling at them before turning back to her computer. A few moments later she reaches around to the key rack on the wall behind her, plucks a key and hands it over.

“Okay, this is your key. We serve breakfast in the dining room to your right there from 7am to 11am. While we do not serve lunch specifically, we always have some snacks and drinks out that you are free to help yourself to. We do serve dinner but that must be requested that morning and it is a fixed menu, but there are plenty of places in town to eat. If you need any recommendations for anything or any information about the local area, please do not hesitate to ask us. We want your stay here to be as comfortable as possible,” she says, before standing up and making her way around the desk.

“Do you have any questions you would like to ask?”

Yaz shakes her head with a polite smile before turning her gaze to her wife next to her.

“Jolie, any questions?” She asks, tapping Jolie’s wrist lightly to get her attention.

“Hmm?”

Yaz smiles fondly, and repeats herself.

“Oh! Questions...questions...Oh, yeah! Is the pool free to use?”

“Yes, it is free to use but we ask that guests only use it between 9am and 8pm and that you wear swimming costumes,” she explains, blushing slightly at the last part.

“Oh great, thank you!” Jolie enthuses before they follow the woman left out of the reception area and down a corridor to the room at the very end.

“Here is your room, if you’d just like to unlock it…”

Yaz steps forward with the key and pushes it into the lock, twisting it and pushing it open. The door gives way to a gorgeous room; a large double bed with pale blue sheets taking up the majority of the space, a terracotta tiled floor and white fluffy rug. The walls are all white except one, which is boarded with neat, pale blue wooden boards. Off to the right there is a built-in closet and an open door to the bathroom, but the wall directly opposite them shows the wall to wall, floor to ceiling windows and sliding door that leads out to a private balcony. They step into the room together, Jolie heading straight for the bed and dumping her backpack on it. She leans her crutches against the wall before sitting down on the bed, bouncing up and down a bit experimentally.

“Ooh, good bed Yaz!” The grins, patting it for Yaz to settle down next to her.

“You requested a shower stool, is that correct?” The hostess says suddenly, and Jolie nods.

“Yeah, for me.”

“It will still be in the room you had originally but I can bring it over for you,” she explains, and Jolie smiles.

“Thank you, that would be great.”

“Not a problem. Alright then, I’ll leave you to it. Any questions just ask at the front desk.”

After a few minutes she reappears with the shower stool and once they have both had a quick shower to freshen up and change into their swimsuits, they make their way to the pool, slipping in easily. They swim a few slow laps together before going to the middle of the pool, floating on their backs and joining their hands together.

“Thanks for coming swimming with me,” Jolie murmurs, only just loud enough to be heard above the splash of the water echoing in the courtyard.

“Of course, I know you love it.”

“Yeah. My leg feels tonnes better too, not as tight and stiff and sore. I know we’ve been trying but it’s still not enjoying being stuck in a car or walking around most of the day,” she says, flipping herself upright and tugging Yaz with her.

“You need to tell me when you’re hurting, love,” Yaz says gently, pushing away the hair that has gotten plastered to her cheek.

“I know...just didn’t want to ruin things,” Jolie admits, shrugging her shoulders. She splashes Yaz with water in the process.

“Oops…”

Yaz giggles, wiping her face. “But you’re not ruining things, hummingbird. I married all of you. So if you’re hurting, tell me,” she reiterates, not for the first time in the last three years.

“Okay,” Jolie says softly, putting her legs down on the bottom of the pool and winding her arms around Yaz’s neck to pull her in for a quick kiss.

“Could we make tomorrow a more low-key day? Maybe swim again in the morning, it helps a lot, then check out the smuggler’s walk? That way we can properly make the most of the markets and the town the day after,” Jolie suggests, and Yaz nods enthusiastically.

“Sounds like a good plan. But for tonight, get dry and then head out and source dinner?”

“Absolutely, I’m starving.”

* * *

The next day they spend the majority of the earlier morning lounging in bed, wrapped up in each other until the imminent closing of the breakfast bar forces them up, into the shower and then to the dining room. After that they spend a couple of hours in the pool, allowing Jolie an opportunity to gently exercise her leg before they head out to the smuggler’s trail that afternoon. They take a late lunch in town before catching a bus down to the coast and the start of the walk. They had asked the owner of the guest house that morning which parts of the trail were the most even and therefore safest to walk on for Jolie. So, armed with an annotated map, water bottles, snacks and crutches they step out of the bus at the start of the longest “safe” part of the trail. The air is salty from the sea and the wind is strong, and Jolie is suddenly very grateful that Yaz had taken the time earlier to braid her hair into two tiny french plaits, because now it is only a few flyaway hairs that are in her eyes.

They start walking slowly along the trail; it is busy but not suffocatingly so, and the strong breeze coming in off the sea is a nice addition, despite the fact that Yaz’s hair is flying everywhere even though she had braided it just the same as Jolie’s. About ten minutes into the walk she ends up having Jolie take the braids and twisting them into two small buns, tucking them in as best she can. It works, and Yaz’s hair is a little more out of her face.

Predictably, as they walk, Jolie begins to ramble facts that she has somehow memorised about the walk.

“I couldn’t quite figure out when this thing started to be built, that seems a bit unclear, but did you know that ever since the mid 19th century this area has attracted rich men to build luxury residences here?” She starts as they take a break on a bench to have a drink of water, the afternoon sun heating them up faster than they had anticipated. Yaz takes a large gulp from her water bottle as she listens to her wife ramble about various local attractions and who built them and who they were owned by and when. At one point she takes the baseball cap from her head, using it to fan herself. Her face is tinted red and shiny, baby hairs sticking to her forehead, but Yaz thinks she looks entirely adorable. Then she catches sight of the muscles in her upper arms flexing as she stretches her hands above her head. She gulps, loudly.

“Alright?” Jolie asks, her smile lopsided as she drops her arms back down to roll her shoulders out.

“Yeah...just your muscles,” Yaz admits with a smirk.

“Oohhh. I’m a regular hulk, me,” she grins, lifting one of her arms up to flex at Yaz, whose skin heats up even more.

“Don’t do that,” she mumbles, cheeks aflame.

Jolie makes a noise of confusion as she puts her hat back on her head, slightly skewiff of course.

“It’s making me think about how much I’d enjoy a repeat of last night and this morning, except we’re in public,” she explains, because she knows that however much she insinuates, Jolie definitely won’t get it unless she explains it very literally.

“Oh right, got you now. Well, there’s nothing stopping us later,” she grins, and only earns an eye roll in response.

"Oh my god…"

"You said that last night!"

"I'm going."

“That’s not quite what you said.”

Yaz stands up and turns back around and raises her eyebrows at Jolie, who smirks knowingly before putting her water bottle back in her bag and pushing herself to her feet and following Yaz to continue along the path. They walk for close to an hour more, Jolie filling them in with random facts that she had read on the drive here until the heat of the afternoon sun gets too much and the path gets too uneven. However all in all it has been a relaxing day, which was exactly what they were hoping for halfway through their honeymoon.

* * *

“Dad, you don’t need to sit that close to the camera,” Yaz sighs later that evening, the laptop on the bed in front of them, the screen taken up entirely by Hakim’s face. Thankfully, he leans back, and now Najia comes into view too, no longer obscured by her husband.

“That’s better,” she says, adjusting her position so that Jolie is resting more comfortably against her for the duration of the video call.

“So, how’s the honeymoon been since you got married? God that makes me feel old, my daughter is married!” Najia exclaims with a smile, and Yaz laughs.

“Hey, you’ve both still got a few years before I would classify you as old,” Yaz replies cheekily, and from her place with her head on her shoulder, Jolie gasps dramatically.

“Yasmin Khan-Smith, how dare you speak to your parents like that!” She jokes, and Yaz rolls her eyes.

“Wait until you two have kids, _then_ we’ll really start to feel old,” Hakim replies, and Najia hums in agreement.

“Actually speaking of that, someone just woke up from a post-walk nap … Oreo!” She calls, clicking her tongue. “Come and see who this is!”

Jolie sits up in anticipation, leaning in closer to the laptop and a second later, the furry brown and white form of their beloved dog comes bounding onto the screen, sitting himself down and panting excitedly. Yaz can even hear the sound of his tail as it wags against the floor.

“Hello my best boy!” Jolie croons with a humongous grin. “Have you been good? I bet you’ve been so good, haven’t you?” She enthuses, and Yaz shakes her head fondly. She knew Jolie had been missing their dog more than she had let on.

“He’s been an angel, not a problem at all,” Najia confirms, reaching forward to scratch the top of his head. “Although I know I was right now not to give in to yours and Sonya’s endless pleas for a dog as children! He’s a lot of work!”

“Hey! You’re worth it though, aren’t you buddy?” Yaz replies, and if a dog could grin, that is exactly the face that Oreo makes.

They catch up for a few more minutes; talking about their respective jobs, assuring Najia that they will be able to see the wedding photographs as soon as they have them, and soon, as always, Jolie is promising to email Hakim with some new conspiracy theories she has come across while Yaz has been driving and she has been trying to fill her time. A while ago, Yaz would have shaken her head and tried to stop the excited rants the two of them tend to go on, but now she doesn't mind, because they are both happy and enjoying themselves and bonding with each other. Plus, it means that she and Najia are not taking the brunt of the rants so much, which suits them just fine.

* * *

The next day in Antibes passes much the same; they swim in the morning, they have lunch in town and then they explore the markets in the town centre for a while, buying a few souvenirs to take home; postcards for everyone, a fridge magnet for themselves and a small fluffy lizard toy for Isaac, which they are sure he will love. They had bought various small gifts for the rest of their family and friends at other places along the trip, and now they only have Sonya left to buy for. However they had decided to wait until Milan to buy her a present, confident that they would find something more suitable there.

At around 4pm they head back to their guest house, check out (much to their dismay) and then they are on the road again, making the four and a half hour drive out of France and inland a bit as they head for Lake Como in the north of Italy. With only about an hour left of the drive Jolie falls asleep, and Yaz glances over at her with a soft smile on her face, But, noting that her head is at an awkward angle and knowing she’ll have one hell of a crick in her neck if she continues to lie like that, Yaz finds the next layby to pull into. She jumps out quietly, going round to the back of the van and rummaging around until she finds the blankets they had stashed back there for when the late night drives get a bit cold. She takes both, and moves back to the passenger side of the van. Opening the door carefully, she makes sure Jolie isn’t going to fall out of the car before tucking one of the blankets around her bare legs and then folding the other up to create a makeshift pillow. She gently slips her arm behind Jolie’s head to lift it up, and her wife stirs, licking her lips and frowning, her eyes slightly open. She mumbles something incoherent.

“Shh, I’m just making a pillow for you so you don’t get a crick in your neck,” she explains, easing Jolie forward and putting the blanket between her and the headrest before moving her head back again.

“That’s it, just go back to sleep,” Yaz whispers, kissing her cheek before leaning back.

“Mmm, thanks. Love you,” she murmurs before her eyes flutter properly closed again. By the time Yaz is back in the driver’s seat Jolie is, true to form, snoring loudly.

* * *

"Jo! Don't rock the boat!"

"I'm not rocking the boat!"

"Well I'm certainly not," Yaz grumbles, gripping onto the edge of the small boat with white knuckles as Jolie rows them strongly across the lake.

"Kind of hard to row a boat without rocking it, love," she grins, but does slow down slightly so as not to jostle Yaz so much.

The next day ater a very lazy morning thanks to their mutual exhaustion and a picnic lunch on one of the beaches of Lake Como they had sought out a place to rent rowboats. And now they have found themselves in the middle of the lake, and definitely not lost according to Jolie. Not at all.

Jolie starts to row again, although a little more smoothly and Yaz shoots her a grateful smile. As much as Jolie loves to swim, she doesn't particularly fancy a dip in an Italian lake in her shorts and t-shirt. However after a few more minutes of rowing, she discovers she now has a song stuck in her head and she starts to sing it under her breath.

"Rock the boat, don't tip the boat over. Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby…"

"Aww Jo! Now that's stuck in my head too!" Yaz complains. Despite her complaints, though, she starts to tap out the rhythm against the wooden plank she is sitting on.

"It's a great song Yaz, used to dance in the kitchen with me gran to this all the time!" She enthuses, continuing the humming under her breath. Yaz shakes her head fondly, finding herself relaxing into the gentle rhythm of the slight rock of the boat and the sound of the oars hitting the water. It is surprisingly laid-back, despite her initial trepidation when Jolie had brought up the idea, and she closes her eyes as the hot mid-afternoon sun hits her face.

They row around for a while longer, before the timer that they had set on Yaz’s phone goes off to remind them that they only have fifteen minutes left of their rental time and so, regretfully, Jolie starts to row them back towards the jetty where the boat rental place is. There are a couple of staff members there waiting for them already and as Jolie carefully steers them into place, her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth, they reach forward to grab the side of the boat and pull them in towards the wooden jetty with a gentle thunk before securing them with a rope.

“Yaz…”

“Yeah?”

“How do I get out?”

“Oh...I didn’t think of that.”

“Yeah, neither did I,” Jolie laughs, looking at the way the boat bobs on the water and the considerable distance up to the jetty.

“Hang on...maybe if I sit sideways on this bench with my back to the jetty then use my arms to hoist myself up backwards?” She suggests, sizing up the task.

“That would probably work. Are you okay with someone helping pull you up? It’s quite a way and I’d rather you didn’t end up in the lake.”

“Yeah...that’s fine,” she agrees before turning up to the two people waiting on the jetty and explains their situation. One of them, along with Yaz, holds the boat steady against the jetty while the other helps Jolie lift herself out of the boat so she lands on her butt on the jetty.

“Hey, it worked!” She exclaims in surprise, and Yaz grins up at her.

“It did! Now we know how to get you out of rowboat in the future if we ever need to,” she grins, and Jolie matches her expression before shuffling back a little further on the jetty. Yaz passes their backpack up to her before standing up in the boat herself to go up onto the jetty. However, with nobody holding the vessel steady it is significantly more wobbly than she expected it to be and her arms fly out to steady herself. She grins at Jolie sheepishly until it stops wobbling and she stands up. But, to Yaz’s detriment, she stands up too quickly at the boat pitches again, much more violently. Before Jolie realises what is happening, it seems to occur in slow motion. Yaz leans forward to try and counter her balance and crouches, but she is already being thrown backwards and seconds later, she breaks the surface of the water with an almighty _splash._

Jolie’s mouth drops open in shock, and she stares at the ripple in the water, holding her breath. Thankfully a few seconds later Yaz reappears above the surface, spluttering and pushing hair and various bits of pond weed out her face. Jolie bursts out laughing.

“Jo!” Yaz whines as she treads water, shaking her head.

“Sorry, sorry. You okay? Not hurt yourself or anything?” She checks, smirking.

“Yeah...I’m fine I think, yeah,” she laughs, swimming over to the jetty where the two boat attendants are already waiting with their arms outstretched ready to pull Yaz out of the water. Once Yaz is sitting safely on the jetty beside her wife, the pair of them look at each other and burst out laughing, doubled over as tears run down their faces.

“Your face! You looked so surprised!” Jolie splutters, picking even more bits of lake life out of Yaz’s hair for her.

“Well it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting! Good thing my phone was in the bag too.”

“Yeah…”

Soon after a staff member appears with a towel for Yaz, and thankfully Jolie’s crutches which they had left behind in the rental hut. Yaz dries off as best as she can, but thankfully the hot sun does most of the work for her as they walk back to the rental hut to return the towel. The owner offers to drive them back to the house they are staying in, clearly feeling slightly guilty about Yaz’s dip in the lake, but they refuse given that it is not far and the walk should finish off drying Yaz’s clothes for her.

“Jo, I think I need a shower.”

“Yeah, you stink of lake water.”

* * *

“I miss him already,” Jolie pouts the next morning in Milan as they make their way to the nearest metro stop to the car rental place where they have just dropped off their beloved Pting, his time with them up. Yaz shakes her head at her wife fondly, knowing she will only get offended if she points out that he was only a van. Then again, she had found herself becoming surprisingly attached to the van, after all, it had been with them throughout their whole honeymoon and driven them over 1500 miles across the continent.

They descend into the subway station together, and thankfully they do not have to wait before a train appears to carry them from the outskirts of the city and further into the city centre. When they emerge from the network of underground tunnels once again, they find themselves just a couple of streets away from the Piazza del Duomo and the cathedral, so they make their way there, gasping in awe at the gorgeous architecture of the famous building and the gorgeous patterns that make up the Piazza in front of it.

However, they soon discover that the midday sun, the hoards of people and the overly-friendly pigeons are becoming too much for both of them, and so they seek out the shade of the side streets where they find small, local shops and cafés. They could easily spend all day exploring just a few of these side streets, but they only have the rest of today in the city and so they reluctantly tear themselves away, after buying the gift of a scarf for Sonya, and finding the nearest tram stop. After that, they end up staying on the tram for most of the day, as it appears that they have chosen a route that passes by many of the city’s most famous attractions. This way, they can see more places while in the shade of the tram, and while the ride is bumpy, it is certainly better for Jolie than walking over busy, cobbled or uneven streets all day.

As the evening starts to draw in, they get off the tram and head out in search of a restaurant for dinner, quickly coming across a whole parade of them set around yet another plaza with a fountain, the atmosphere lively with music and light and chatter spilling out of various bars and small restaurants. 

They select one of the slightly quieter-looking restaurants, although they are all busy so it is clearly no reflection of the popularity, and they are seated quickly in a booth along the back of the room, meaning that they both have privacy while still being able to see the goings on of the rest of the restaurant and then the plaza outside.

They work their way through meals of incredible handmade Italian pizzas and gelatos before, stomachs full, they leave the restaurant hand in hand and take a leisurely evening stroll through the city in the general direction of the hotel they are staying in, not worrying too much about the time.

However, they are glad when they arrive back at a not unreasonable time given how early they have to get up tomorrow morning for their flight. They quickly crawl into bed together, adopting their usual position curled around each other as they read, before one of them starts to drop off, the other easing them both under the blankets and becoming the default big spoon for the night.

* * *

Jolie bites her lip and rocks on her crutches slightly as they wait in the security line at the airport outside of Milan. It seems that they are travelling at a peak time, and the security hall is packed. She is claustrophobic and feeling panicky and she has been standing up and still for far too long. Her shoulders ache from the weight being put through them, while her right knee and her leg all the way up to her hip constantly twinge in discomfort, the usual dull ache there amplified even further.

"You okay?" Yaz asks, placing her hand in the dip of her lower back in comfort.

"It's too busy in here...and I need to sit down," she admits, remembering how often Yaz encourages her to be honest about her needs. Even after almost four years together, three since her accident, she still finds that she has to constantly remind herself that she does not have to be independent and that it is okay to lean on Yaz and be dependent on her where it makes things easier for her.

“I know, I’m getting really claustrophobic,” Yaz replies, biting her lip anxiously. She looks around, trying to catch the eye of a member of staff to see if they can be fast tracked through security. There had been practically no line when they had flown out of England and so they had not had this issue. Thankfully someone spots them quickly and walks over. Yaz explains their situation and they are taken out of the queue they have been standing in for the last 45-minutes and moved to a much smaller one, where there are just two or three other groups in front of them. There are even chairs to sit in while waiting, and Jolie sinks into them gratefully, tipping her head back and stifling a groan.

“Okay?”

“Better,” Jolie replies, turning to Yaz with what she hopes is a reassuring smile. Of course she isn’t one hundred percent okay, and she probably won’t be until they are home, but it is a significant improvement and the best they have at the moment.

Thankfully they only have to wait about five more minutes before they are taken through security, Jolie being given a thorough pat-down and search. Finally they make their way into the terminal, but finding they are too tired to really look at the shops, they find a spot to sit and watch the airfield before their gate number flashes up on the board and they make their way down there slowly, knowing from experience flying out of England that they will have to locate someone from the airline to let them know that they need early boarding. Once they have done that, they are seated off to the side along with a few older passengers. It had been the same out of England, and both women find themselves receiving curious looks, the other people no doubt questioning why they are here.

Finally they are allowed to board the plane, and Yaz takes Jolie’s bag for her while she awkwardly shuffles sideways up the narrow aisle until they find their seat. After their flight out where they had little legroom and Jolie had suffered the consequences, they had managed to call the airline flying them home and explain the situation, meaning that they were pre assigned seats with a little more legroom which will hopefully make the flight home easier and less painful for Jolie if she has more room to move.

Once they are seated, they get what they need out of their bags and then Yaz stores them along with Jolie’s folded crutches in the overhead lockers. Before they know it, they are up and away, leaving behind their sunny honeymoon bubble and heading back to their real lives back in Sheffield.

* * *

Unsurprisingly when they land almost three hours later, the weather is damp, drizzly and dreary, making the prospect of going back to normality even less appealing. It takes forever to both get out of the airport and then find their car, and Yaz can tell that when they get into their car, Jolie is not telling the full truth about how sore she is. But, knowing that they really can’t do much about it until they get home, she does not say anything and simply drives them out of the busy airport car park and onto the motorway towards Sheffield.

An hour later, they pull up outside the Khan family flat, and Jolie’s face lights up.

“Do you want to stay for a cup of tea, they’ll offer?” Yaz asks, unbuckling her seatbelt and turning to look at Jolie next to her.

“Honestly … I just want to go home and get a heat pack and cuddle on the sofa with you and Oreo,” she admits, smiling sheepishly.

“Me too, hummingbird. So we’ll just collect Oreo, say hi and politely excuse ourselves?”

“Sounds like a plan … actually, why don’t we invite them over for dinner for next weekend? Then they might be less likely to interrogate us,” Jolie suggests, and Yaz laughs out loud.

“Yeah, good plan. My mum would make a damn good detective if she wanted to sometimes!”

Together they get out of the car, Yaz texting her mum to let them know they’re there to pick Oreo up before slowly making their way to the lift and up to the Khan flat. Despite her exhaustion, Yaz can practically feel her wife fizzing with excitement at the prospect of being reunited with their dog again. She raps on the door, leaving an arm wrapped around Jolie’s waist in support and anticipation of what might be about to happen.

And she is right, because as soon as she raps on the door, she hears a lot of shuffling before the door swings open, Najia standing in front while Hakim stands a little further back, holding tightly onto Oreo’s harness while he squirms against the hold, desperate to be back with his owners as his claws click against the wooden floor.

“It’s fine, let him go,” Jolie grins, sitting down on the floor with Yaz’s help and a thump as Oreo comes bounding forward, barrelling straight into Jolie and yapping excitedly, tail thwacking against her legs as he licks her face urgently.

“Hello buddy!” She croons, rubbing behind his ears in excitement. “Did you miss us? I bet you did, didn’t you? We missed you so much!”

Yaz stands behind them and watches in amusement as they get reacquainted, shaking her head fondly.

“I think I know who’s the favourite,” she laughs, but as soon as the words are out of her mouth, Oreo decides he is done greeting Jolie and bounds back to Yaz, rubbing himself against her legs and licking her hands when she bends down to pat his side. Of course, he ends up lying down and rolling onto his back, where both Yaz and Jolie reward him with tummy rubs until he is squirming in joy and his tongue is lolling out the side of his mouth.

“Would you like to stay for a cup of tea?” Najia offers, and the newlyweds look at each other with a smirk.

“We’d love to, Najia, but Yaz is pretty tired from all the driving and I’m sore from the plane,” Jolie explains with an apologetic expression, and Najia nods in understanding.

“Oh, of course. Go home, rest, relax. You must be exhausted!” She exclaims, and Jolie and Yaz smile at her gratefully.

“Thanks, mum. Actually, why don’t you both come round for dinner next weekend? We should have some of the wedding photographs back by then and we can show you the other photographs we took throughout the trip,” she suggests, and a not very subtle grin takes over Najia’s face.

“That would be lovely. Now go on, get yourselves home and get some energy back!”

Yaz smiles as she tries to hold Oreo still long enough for Jolie to clip his lead to his harness. She does after a moment before handing it back to Yaz, who makes sure she has a secure hold on it before helping Jolie up from the floor with strong arms. Oreo does seem to have calmed down a little bit now, his initial excitement of being reunited with his owners wearing off as he returns to his normally well-behaved self. As much as they are glad to see Najia and Hakim again, all both of them really want is to be in the familiarity and peace and quiet of their home.

****

Once home, Jolie takes their flight bags in and starts on warming up some heat packs for her leg, making cups of tea for them both and locating their weighted blanket while Yaz shoulders the job of lugging their suitcases up to the flight of stairs to their flat. Although buying and moving into this flat almost a year ago means that they now have an office space as well as not having the loss of money from paying rent, it does come with the disadvantage of being in an old building with no lift, and they often find themselves wishing they had searched a little harder for somewhere suitable to live. Especially if they had known how much Jolie’s mobility would continue to deteriorate.

Shaking that thought from her head, Jolie carefully carries their supplies one by one from the kitchen to the living room, depositing them on the coffee table, just as Yaz comes through from the bedroom in her pyjamas, rubbing her eyes despite it being only the middle of the afternoon.

“I’ll find something to watch while you go and get changed?” she offers as Jolie drops the blanket onto the sofa. Jolie nods at her with a tired smile before going to change herself, coming back a few minutes later to Yaz having found a documentary they’ve seen before for background noise.

“Do you mind if I’m the little spoon? I think the exhaustion is catching up with me, I feel really jittery,” she asks tentatively, and Jolie gives her a wide but soft smile.

“Of course not, you can always be the little spoon when you want to be,” she says, making her way over to the sofa with Oreo in tow. “Budge up so I can get comfy then.”

Yaz stands up so Jolie can get herself situated on the sofa, heat packs in place before Yaz climbs onto the sofa in the space between her legs, getting herself comfortable with her head resting on Jolie’s sternum, arms wound around her waist as she snuggles in. Jolie reaches up to draw the blanket from the back of the sofa to tuck firmly around them both, its additional weight providing a grounding comfort that helps them both slow down a little from the madness of the last week and a bit. The final piece of the puzzle falls into place when Oreo jumps up at the other end of the sofa, lying down on their feet and stretching himself up their lower bodies, effectively pinning them in place and providing even more grounding comfort.

They do not even make it ten minutes into the documentary before they are both out like a light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I also think I'm over the crisis of confidence that I was having last week, so that's good! Your comments were all so lovely and kind, thank you :)


	4. Normality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tbh this is just a fluffy filler chapter featuring Oreo being the best dog so...enjoy?

“Yaz, I can’t find my glasses!”

“Have you checked the dining table?”

“What? Why would they be — oh! There they are! How did you know that?”

“Because you always take them off when you’re eating breakfast to rub your face because you’re still tired and nine times out of ten you forget to put them back on again,” Yaz informs her wife as she appears through the double French doors into their living space.

“Huh…I do,” Jolie grins as she scrubs the lenses with the edge of her button up before sliding them onto her face. However, something doesn’t seem quite in focus and she adjusts them a little with a scrunch of her face.

“Yaz…”

“Yeah?” The woman in question replies from where she’s packing the lunches Jolie had already prepared.

“I’ve already got my contacts in, I don’t need my glasses,” she laughs, and Yaz turns around to face her, only to snigger at her forlorn expression.

“Are you on site today or in the office?” She asks as she walks over, handing Jolie her lunch to slip into her backpack.

“Office, I’ll have a ton of emails to catch up on. Even if you tell clients you’re away, they still pester you with stuff to deal with when you’re back,” she grumbles, double checking she has everything she needs for the day before zipping up her bag and swinging it onto her back.

“Probably best though, considering how scatterbrained I am today,” she reconsiders with a shrug.

“Hey, it’s just because you’ve been out of your routine. Once you get back into the groove of things you’ll be fine, you always are,” Yaz reassures, winding her arms around her waist and pulling her closer in reassurance for a moment. It helps Yaz too, she is slightly nervous about going back to work for the sole reason that she has gotten used to having Jolie around all day every day, able to provide comfort whenever she needs it, and so to go a whole day without her will be a little bit of a struggle. She doesn’t like to admit it, but she leans on Jolie more than she would like, and often feels guilty about that, knowing how much her wife struggles with everyday things, especially since her accident and the ongoing problems with her leg. However the few times she has shared these worries with Jolie, especially when Yaz herself is particularly struggling, Jolie reassures her a thousand times over that their dedication goes both ways, and that Yaz can lean on her as much as she needs, whenever she needs. It is still something they are both learning, and most likely always will be, but as long as they are both willing to make that effort, it will be worth it.

“Remind me what time you get your lunch break?” Jolie asks, pulling Yaz out of her thoughts.

“Twenty past twelve … why?”

“So I can take mine at the same time and call you,” Jolie smiles, pressing her lips to her forehead. “I know you’re a bit nervous, that doesn’t escape me.”

Yaz shakes her head fondly, resting her temple against the base of Jolie’s neck and taking in a deep, steadying breath of her scent.

“You’ll be great, you always are. The kids aren’t going to resent you because you took a bit of time off.”

Yaz laughs softly, raising her head.

“How did you know I was worryin’ about that?”

“Because you always do,” Jolie shrugs. “You dedicate a lot to those kids, and I know you love your job. But you’re not awful for taking time off.”

Yaz smiles again, before straightening up and shaking her shoulders out.

“Right, let's get going then. Before we’re really late,” she decides, bending down to pick her bag up and scratch Oreo behind his ears at the same time.

“We’ll take you out for a good runaround after work, yeah buddy?” She asks, and he wags his tail in excitement.

After they both wish Oreo a goodbye, they head down the stairs at the back of their building slowly before heading to the car, Jolie gladly getting into the driver’s seat as she does every morning. They had upgraded their car to an automatic last year, partially because Jolie’s car that she’d had since she was 18 really was on its last legs, and partially because they had found out that Jolie would be able to drive significantly more often if they had an automatic. It was one of the things she had hated the most about the long-term effects of her accident, and having a car she can actually drive on a regular basis has made a huge difference.

They drive with the radio on, singing along to a couple of songs and enthusiastically joining in with the quizzes until, twenty minutes later, they pull up in one of the streets next to the school where Yaz works. The strange nerves hit Yaz again, and she fiddles with her lanyard around her neck.

“You’ll be fine,” Jolie reassures, reaching over to squeeze her knee.

“I know...why am I always so nervous when I go back every term?”

Jolie shrugs, twisting in her seat to take Yaz’s hands properly in hers and squeezes firmly.

“I don’t know. But what I do know is that you’re great at your job, and you’re always fine by the end of the day. Plus I’m in the office today, remember? So I’m right there on the other end of a text or a call.”

Yaz smiles weakly before disentangling herself from Jolie and picking her bag up from the footwell.

“I’ll be fine,” she tells herself in reassurance, one hand on the door handle.

“You totally will,” Jolie reassures, before leaning over to kiss her soundly like she does every morning before letting her go.

Yaz climbs out of the car, and then waits on the pavement to wave Jolie off like always before turning around and heading into the school.

And it turns out that Jolie is right, because as soon as she has signed herself in and is back in her little office, the calming colours and soft furnishing designed to be welcoming and safe for the kids she works with having the same effect on her, she already feels less like the day will be a complete disaster. Even less so when she pulls a picture frame out of her bag and sets it down on her desk; she and Jolie grinning at the camera standing beside Pting the campervan back in Portugal. Combined with the picture of Oreo as her laptop background, it makes for a pretty perfect setup.

* * *

Ten minutes after dropping Yaz off at work, Jolie pulls up outside her own place of employment and turns the engine off. She takes a steadying breath. She still feels slightly off, as though she is missing something important, but she remembers what Yaz said earlier, and she knows that once she is back in her routine she will be fine. Technically she still has fifteen minutes before her 8:30 start, but she heads into the building anyway, seeking out the familiar head of curly hair of her closest coworker.

“Jolie!” Bill yells from behind the reception desk as soon as she enters the lobby, and she stands up, grinning broadly at her. Jolie grins right back.

“Bill! Did you miss me?”

“Like a headache, mate,” she grins, rounding the front desk.

“Good for a hug?”

“Yep,” Jolie replies, shifting her weight to balance on one of her crutches so she can wrap the other arm around the younger woman, squeezing her tight.

“Missed you, mate. Staff room for a morning cuppa?” Jolie suggests, already heading down the corridor.

“You bet.”

Bill is Jolie’s closest friend at work, they had started working at the company around the same time and had soon found themselves to be similar, both in interests and personalities, and they had bonded quickly. Now Jolie would consider Bill one of her closest friends, certainly her closest friend at work, and she really had missed her no-nonsense approach and dry sense of humour while she was away. She is glad to be back.

They walk down the length of the corridor together before arriving in the staffroom, and Bill makes them both cups of tea before sitting down on the sofa next to Jolie.

“So, how does it feel to be a married woman?” She asks, taking a sip of her drink.

“Technically, I’m not legally married yet.”

“Eh, close enough. You went on your honeymoon, you had a ceremony. You’re as good as married in my view. How was it though?”

Jolie takes a sip of her tea, and smiles to herself at the memories.

“It was amazing … It's the first holiday we’ve been on abroad together so it was quite something. The plane played havoc with my leg but it was worth it. We had this awesome little yellow camper van that we drove, and we went to so many gorgeous places. Even the driving wasn’t boring, there was just so much stuff to look at. The ceremony was just perfect too…” 

Jolie finds herself recounting the trip to Bill for the next ten minutes, and before she knows it she has to regretfully wrap up the conversation and head to her desk and Bill back to the reception desk. In the office she shares with five of her coworkers, she greets them with a smile before sitting down at her own desk with a relieved sigh. Yaz was right, it does already feel good to be back in her routine, and she turns on her computer, pulls out her planner and organises her desk just the way she likes it. One of her favourite things about working here is how relaxed the workplace is. Clients do not regularly come to this part of the offices, and so the employees are free to chat, listen to music through earbuds and work in a more relaxed manner. As long as their work is done on time and to a good standard, their boss tends to be fairly relaxed on how they go about it. Jolie knows she is lucky to work in such a relaxed place, and she thanks that again as she sends an encouraging text to Yaz before plugging her earbuds in and setting her phone down face up on her desk, ready to respond when Yaz texts her back. She flexes her fingers, psyching herself up to work through the inevitable mountain of emails.

* * *

By her last appointment of the day, Yaz is definitely starting to feel the exhaustion set in, and the prospect of going food shopping when Jolie comes to pick her up and taking Oreo out for a good run around seems extremely overwhelming. She is beginning to wonder why she and Jolie spent most of yesterday lounging in bed or on the sofa. Most likely it was because they wanted to make the most of that one last day of their honeymoon before they were thrown back into reality.

At least Jolie’s call at lunchtime had brightened her day somewhat; of course having her right there in her office with her would have been preferable but her face on Yaz’s phone screen as Jolie ate her lunch and Yaz ate hers was a certain improvement to her day. Now, just before she is due a knock on her office door, she minimises the programs open on her laptop so it is just Oreo grinning back at her, and she casts a glance at the new photograph on her desk. She is actually surprised that none of the students she had met with today had mentioned it; they are an observant bunch and usually not shy to point things out, but perhaps she had been sitting in such a way that she had hidden it from their view.

She is mulling over this as there is a soft knock at her door and she straightens out her planner before standing up and making her way over to her office door to swing it open, smiling at the student standing fidgeting on the other side.

“Hi Sarah! Please come on in,” she says reassuringly, and after a slight hesitation Sarah steps in before dropping her backpack on the floor with a clunk and flopping down into the squishy armchair in the corner of the room, facing the door.

“Can I have the lights on purple today please?” She asks, and Yaz nods, taking the small remote from her desk and handing it over so Sarah can press the button to turn the strip of LED lights around the top of her walls to a warm purple colour. It is perhaps one of her favourite things about her office, and she always lets the kids choose which colour they want. Once she has gathered her planner and her notepad to jot down anything to write up later, she settles herself in the armchair opposite Sarah. Before she starts to talk she reaches over and pulls the mug of tea from her desk to take a sip, but grimaces when the cold liquid hits the back of her throat.

“Eww, that’s been sitting there longer than I thought it had,” she grimaces, and Sarah laughs nervously. 

“You know what Sarah, why don’t we have a bit of a catchup before we get started with your session?” She suggests, knowing that the young girl has a lot of trust issues after growing up in care and had missed her last session thanks to Yaz’s absence. Hopefully starting things off a bit more relaxed will help make Sarah more comfortable around Yaz again.

“Yeah … could you go first?” She asks, and Yaz nods with a soft smile.

“Of course I can. Well I went on a holiday, we went on a road trip from Portugal to Italy!” She says, and Sarah’s face lights up in interest.

“That’s a long drive … who did you go with?”

“My wife, actually. It was our honeymoon,” she explains, but Sarah’s face creases in confusion.

“Wait, you have a wife?” She asks, and Yaz nods in confirmation.

“Yep.”

“So you’re _not_ with Mr Harkness the science teacher?” Sarah asks, and now it’s Yaz’s turn for her face to crease into confusion.

“No … why would you think that, Sarah? You’re not in trouble,” she adds, when the young girl looks concerned.

“Everyone does,” she shrugs. “Everyone thinks you and Mr. Harkness are together.”

Yaz cannot help but burst into laughter, although she tries to restrain it to maintain her professionalism. “Sorry to tell you Sarah, but that’s definitely not the case.”

“Oh,” she sighs, looking down at her lap. “Sorry, I thought…”

“Hey, it’s alright. It’s easy to believe what everyone else says, especially when you’ve not really got any evidence against it. Not your fault and I don’t like you any less for it,” she reassures with a gentle smile, and eventually her patience is rewarded when Sarah looks up at her again.

“See? Still don’t dislike you, Sarah.”

Sarah smiles shyly, before her gaze flicks over to Yaz’s desk behind her, taking in the photograph on her desk.

“Is that your wife?” She asks, pointing. Yaz turns around to look at the photo and smiles involuntarily.

“Yeah, it is. That was the campervan we drove across Europe in.”

“Is that your dog, or is that just a random dog?”

“That is our dog, he’s called Oreo.”

“Oh, he’s cute!”

After letting Sarah tell her about how her half-term holiday went, they move onto the usual session, and when the young girl leaves forty-five minutes later, Yaz is exhausted but satisfied. The first day back is always rough, having to once again get used to dealing with the students she works with, supporting them through all manner of challenges. But she loves her job. Knowing she has fifteen more minutes until the end of day bell goes, she takes the time to schedule in the follow-up appointments for the students she saw today before taking a few minutes to herself, given that she has an awkward amount of time left. Picking up her phone, she smiles when she sees a message from Jolie.

**Jolie [14:54]:** Hope you’re having a good day!! Someone in the office brought cookies, so I stole you one for later :) x

**Yaz [15:00]:** yum, thanks! love you hummingbird. got a funny story to tell you later btw x

When the bell rings five minutes later, Yaz, finishes up what she is doing on her laptop, giving the school a bit of a chance to clear out before she flips her laptop closed and puts her stuff in her bag. As the last of the students are filtering out, she locks her office door before making her way to the physics department next door.

“Jack Harkness, why does half the school think we’re together?” She asks as soon as she pokes her head in his classroom door.

“What?” He replies, looking up from where he’s tidying away supplies into cupboards.

“Apparently, most of the student body thinks we’re a thing,” she informs, setting herself up at one of the benches and sitting on a stool before opening her laptop up. She often goes to his classroom after the students have left to do her work, both of them enjoying the company while they work.

"Huh, where did you hear that?" He asks, sitting down at his desk and turning the smart board off. 

"One of my students today. She asked what I did over half-term, I said I was on holiday, she asked who with, I said my wife and she was beyond confused," Yaz explains with a laugh.

"Huh. Where the hell did they all get that rumour from?"

"Probably the fact that we hang out most days after school and we're not likely friends," Yaz theorises, and Jack nods. It is true, they are certainly unlikely friends. Back in September when Yaz had started the job, she had worked with Jack a lot due to the issues one of the students in his form group had been having. A combination of a friendly face and a lack of opportunity for Yaz to meet other members of staff, given her generally solitary line of work, had meant that the two had quickly become firm friends. Now, along with Rory the school nurse, she would consider Jack one of her closer friends.

“Eh … You want to try and set people straight?”

“Nah, I think it’s quite funny if you’re alright with it,” Yaz says, and Jack shrugs.

“Fine with me.”

* * *

“Why did we invite your parents over for dinner to look at the wedding photos?” Jolie grumbles as she leans around the back of the TV to take out one of the connections so she can plug her laptop in. Oreo lies on his bed in the bay window next to her, wriggling slightly in his sleep.

“You’re the one who suggested we invite them over,” Yaz laughs as she puts the lasagne into the oven, setting the timer before straightening up.

“Oh yeah, that was me,” Jolie chuckles nervously before she manages to successfully connect her laptop and she gives a small whoop of triumph under her breath as her desktop background — a picture of her, Yaz and Oreo out on a walk somewhere — pops up on the TV.

“Yep … what time have you got?”

“Ten past five,” Jolie supplies with a glance at the screen before sitting down on the sofa with a heavy sigh and fiddling her fingers in her lap. Oreo spots it immediately and gets up, wandering over before putting his paws up on Jolie’s lap and resting his chin on them, his tongue darting out to lick at Jolie’s hands. Yaz is just about to head to the bedroom to get changed in the twenty minutes before her parents are due to arrive when she spots the action and diverts her course.

“What’s up?” She asks gently as she sits down on the sofa next to her wife, hand coming up to rub circles into her back comfortingly.

“Dunno,” Jolie shrugs. “I’m just a bit nervous about seeing your parents again, now that we’re married. Don’t know why though.”

Yaz smiles fondly at her, wrapping her arm all the way around her shoulders and pulling her close. “There’s nothing to be nervous about. They’re not going to suddenly like you any less because we got married, y’know. They know we’re married, they know we wanted to have our own ceremony, and they know we’re having a party with everyone in the summer. If that’s what you’re worried about, I can assure you that it’s no big deal. Plus, once you and my dad get talking about conspiracies, you’ll be fine, you always are,” she reassures through soft laughter, which Jolie copies.

“Yeah … I get on with your dad fine, but I just don’t feel like I do as well with your mum,” she admits.

“Jo, trust me, she loves you. You might not have as much to talk about with her as with my dad, but that’s alright. She still loves you regardless, and not just because you give my dad an outlet for spouting all his nonsense.”

Jolie giggles at that, a light sound, and Yaz presses a kiss to her cheek affectionately before giving Oreo’s ears a quick scratch and standing up.

“You okay while I go and get changed?”

“Yeah … is what I’m wearing okay?” She asks, looking down at the navy blue blouse with white polka dots tucked into jeans.

“Yeah, perfect. Gorgeous in fact, as always.”

“Even when it’s first thing in the morning and my clothes are all creased and my hair is both plastered to my face and looking like I’ve been electrocuted?”

“Even then.”

Yaz gives her one last kiss before she goes to get changed, leaving Jolie fiddling nervously with her fingers and Oreo’s collar as she waits. Thankfully, five minutes before Yaz’s parents are due, Yaz reappears looking gorgeous in plaid trousers and a plain white shirt and sits down next to her.

“You’re more nervous that when we told them we got engaged,” Yaz teases gently, and Jolie breathes out a laugh.

“Yeah...I don’t know why I’m more nervous now.”

“I’m not sure either, but it’ll be fine. Nothing big has happened, nothing big is going to happen that they don’t know about. Oreo is already on it, clearly,” she laughs, just as the dog in question jumps up onto the sofa entirely and lays across Jolie’s lap. She gives a soft _oof_ of surprise; it was better when he was a puppy and so much smaller, but of course he had never lost the habit and they don’t have the heart to train the behaviour out of him. Besides, it is completely adorable, and helpful.

“See? He’s got you, I’ve got you.”

Jolie smiles before leaning down to bury her face in Oreo’s fur, scratching under his chin while Yaz stands up and looks out the window.

“Oh, here they are,” she announces, accompanied by the sound of a car stopping and then doors slamming. She turns around, eyeing up the sight of a far too big dog sprawled across her wife.

“I’ll go down and meet them, you look pretty stuck there,” she laughs, and Jolie nods.

“Yeah, probably a good idea.”

Yaz smiles and squeezes her shoulder before making her way out the door and down the stairs to the front of the building. She can see her parents waiting through the glass of the front door, and she waves at them before unlocking it and immediately being drawn into her mother’s embrace.

“Hi, mum!” She squeaks, wrapping her arms around her in return. 

“Oh we’ve missed you.”

“We saw you last weekend, mum! And we weren’t away that long!” Yaz protests.

“She’s just clingy because you got married,” Hakim explains with a chuckle, and Yaz pulls back.

“Don’t tell Jo that, she’s weirdly nervous. Even more so than when we told you that we got engaged,” Yaz reveals, and Najia frowns.

“She is?”

“Yeah, not sure why. Although she’s currently stuck on the sofa with a lap dog that’s way too big to be a lap dog,” Yaz laughs, leading the way inside and towards the staircase.

“Is she feeling better after the trip though? She looked like she was in a lot of pain,” Hakim asks as they make their way up.

“Yeah, we didn’t realise how sore the plane rides would make her and then all the sitting still in the van contrasted with the walking, it took its toll on her. She’s doing better now though,” Yaz reassures as they reach the top of the first flight of stairs before she leads them to her front door. Swinging it open, she calls out to Jolie to alert her to their presence but it is not necessary because moments later she appears in the hallway, Oreo at her heels.

“Hi Yaz’s mum, hi Yaz’s dad!” She blurts out brightly, twisting her hands in front of her. “Can I take your coats?”

If Najia and Hakim are confused by their daughter-in-law’s overly formal behaviour they thankfully do not show it, nor do they correct her with their names and simply hand their coats over with a polite “thank you” before greeting Oreo enthusiastically and moving their way through to the living space.

“Yaz, I’m so nervous? Why am I so nervous?” Jolie asks in a mild panic as soon as Najia and Hakim are out of earshot, chewing her lower lip while her eyes are wide. Yaz takes her hands and gently leads her over to the trunk they keep by the front door for storage and sits them down on it.

“Take a breath, that’s it,” Yaz encourages, rubbing her thumbs over the backs of Jolie’s hands. Jolie obliges and takes a few deep breaths, but her good leg is still bouncing and her chest is flushed.

“Why am I like this today?” She asks, almost sounding distressed with herself.

“I don’t know, babe. It could be that you’re just tired after getting back to our routine, there could be something else in the back of your mind. I don’t know but you just need to remember that nothing bad is going to happen and I’m right here to jump in and save you if you’re struggling with conversation,” Yaz says with a gentle smile.

“Yeah...it’ll be fine.”

“It totally will. How about you put the garlic bread in the oven when we go through and I’ll get the conversation started? And that way you can join in when you feel like it.”

“Yeah, thanks. Love you,” Jolie says, sitting up away from Yaz and running her hands through her hair a few times.

“I love you too, you’re amazing. Come on then.”

Yaz stands up and then reaches out her hands to give Jolie a pull up from the seat before leaving a hand on her lower back as they walk down the hallway and through to the living space. Najia and Hakim have already made themselves at home on the sofa, and Hakim is engaged in a small game of fetch with Oreo while Najia watches on in amusement. 

“Remind me never to give in to your dad’s request for a dog, no matter how much he asks,” Najia says in a low voice as Yaz sits down next to her mum on the sofa.

“Hey, I’m entertained!” Hakim protests. “And look how cute he is!”

Yaz rolls her eyes in anticipation, because she has heard this conversation between her parents at least once a month since she and Jolie had brought Oreo home.

“Yes, Hakim, but they’re also a lot of work, and very expensive. It’s not all just playing!”

“Mum’s right, dad. I somehow can’t see either of you getting up at 6 in the morning in the middle of winter to take your dog for a walk in the pouring rain before work,” she laughs, and, predictably, Hakim sits back with a sigh.

“I suppose you’re right,” he admits, and Yaz shakes her head affectionately. Every time.

“Oh, drinks!” Jolie suddenly announces from behind them in the kitchen, making everyone jump slightly.

“Sorry, would anyone like a drink?”

“Erm, how long is it until dinner is ready, love?” Najia asks Jolie, and the blonde turns back around to squint at the timer on the oven.

“About twenty minutes, give or take,” she replies.

“I’ll wait then,” Najia replies.

“Same for me,” Hakim chips in, before engaging himself in a gentle game of tug-o-war with Oreo.

“Oh, okay,” she replies, clearly slightly thrown off by their answers and realising she doesn’t have much more she can stall with. Subtly, Yaz shuffles over on the sofa cushion and pats the space next to her, hoping Jolie will get the message. She does, and sinks down gratefully next to Yaz , still bouncing her good leg. Just as Yaz moves a comforting hand to her lower back once again and scratches it gently, Oreo abandons his game of tug-o-war to come over and rest his head on Jolie's lap. Yaz can feel the moment her head and her heart stop racing quite so much.

They spend the next twenty minutes or so engaging in fairly easy conversation, asking Najia and Hakim how their jobs are going, Yaz and Jolie sharing how their first week back at work has been, discussing how Sonya and Ryan are getting on together, really just stalling time until the timer on the oven goes off and announces that their dinner is ready. Like usual, Jolie gets up to set the table while Yaz goes through to the kitchen and takes the heavy porcelain dish of bubbling lasagne and the baguette of garlic bread out of the oven, setting them both down on the stovetop. She gets four pasta bowls out before she starts to serve it up, and once she knows her mum and dad are happy with their portion sizes, and encourages them to sit down and they do, taking the garlic bread with them.

“This an okay portion for you, babe?” Yaz murmurs as her wife comes to stand next to her, showing her the square of lasagne she has cut for her.

“Erm yeah, that’s fine,” she concludes, before eyeing up the portions already on the bench.

“Ones at the back are mum and dad’s,” Yaz informs, picking up the last empty dish and depositing Jolie’s portion onto it. Jolie hums in agreement before picking up Najia and Hakim’s plates and carrying them to the table, Yaz right behind her with the other two.

Once they get eating, Jolie finds it easier to join in with the conversation but before long, Najia predictability starts asking them about their plans for their wedding party with all their family and friends.

“Jolie, we would actually like to make you an offer,” Najia says just as they’re finishing up the meal, and Jolie looks up in confusion as she puts her last piece of garlic bread in her mouth. She awkwardly chews and swallows it before answering.

“An offer?”

“Yes. We know that Hakim is going to walk Yaz down the aisle on the day, but we weren’t sure if you had anyone to fill that role for you. So, if you would like, I’d be more than happy to walk you down the aisle,” Najia explains, and Jolie immediately tears up.

“I — Najia, that’s such a kind offer but we actually already have someone who is going to walk me down the aisle. Otherwise I would absolutely take you up on that,” she explains, grateful when Yaz winds an arm around her waist.

“Oh, you have?”

“Yeah. William, my sort of grandad. He and his wife Ada were my gran’s best friends and they looked after me a lot when I was growing up, they’re coming to the wedding. I asked William because he’s the closest thing I’ve got to a dad,” she explains, training her gaze on the table.

“Jolie, that’s fine, you don’t need to explain yourself to us. We’re happy you have someone to walk you down the aisle, really,” Najia reassures, reaching over the table to squeeze Jolie’s hands.

“Yeah, thank you. Sorry, not that great with … general conversing,” she explains, and Najia chuckles softly.

“We’d kind of noticed, love. Not a bad thing, though. Just you.”

Jolie gives a small smile and subtly reaches down for Oreo, who has been sitting on her feet for the whole meal. He gets up and puts his chin in her hands, and Jolie gives him a small smile.

“Right, who’s ready for some of Clara’s famous raspberry and white chocolate cheesecake?” Yaz asks, and everyone’s faces light up in enthusiasm.

“I’ll take that as a yes, then!”

After they work through the cheesecake they retire to the living room, and Jolie takes Najia and Hakim through some of the pictures via her laptop plugged into the TV, seemingly much more relaxed now that she has a task to do and her dog on the sofa beside her. Normally they don’t allow him on the furniture, but if he is helping, they don’t mind as much.

By the time Najia and Hakim have left at around nine in the evening, poor Jolie looks dead on her feet and not at all likely to move from where she’s curled up on the sofa with Oreo’s head in her lap. Yaz goes to take pity on her, telling her to just go to bed and she’ll be through when she’s washed the dishes, but Jolie is having none of it and insists on helping out, despite Yaz’s fears that she is so tired she will end up dropping things on the floor. However, she perseveres and half an hour later Yaz is barely even in bed before her wife is sprawled out happily, snoring as ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I'm currently struggling to write next week's chapter aka their wedding at home! So please don't hold your breath for that being on time!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! If you have the chance, please feel free to leave a comment, they make my day and really help me to keep writing their story! If you fancy a chat or you want to leave me suggestions, I can be found in the following places:
> 
> Twitter: @emmyphant_  
> Tumblr: @emmyphant  
> Discord: doodlesimss#8487
> 
> If you want to check out the cover I made from scratch for this fic, you can do so here on [twitter](https://twitter.com/emmyphant_/status/1360567020136325121?s=20) and on[ tumblr](https://emmyphant.tumblr.com/post/643007214999764992/ahhhh-its-the-jolie-and-yaz-sequel-enjoy-the)! Seriously, please give it a look, it took me forever to draw 😂


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